Black-backed Woodpecker Picoides arcticus Scientific name definitions

One of the most enigmatic woodpeckers in North America, and likely to remain so because of its general rarity and uncertainty about its population dynamics. The Black-backed Woodpecker breeds in boreal forests from central Alaska and northern Canada, south to New England, the north-central U.S., and montane areas of the northwestern U.S. Despite its widespread breeding distribution, this woodpecker is confined mostly to stands populated by wood-boring insects in coniferous forests. It is an irruptive species that forages opportunistically on outbreaks of bark (e.g., Scolytidae) and especially wood-boring (e.g., Cerambycidae) beetles colonizing recently burned habitats. This restricted diet renders the species vulnerable to local and regional extinction due to fire-suppression programs, salvage logging (post-fire and post-outbreak), and rarefaction of mature and overmature forest stands.

The Black-backed Woodpecker’s sooty black dorsal plumage camouflages it against the bark of the burned trees that it favors for foraging. Its loud foraging taps, calls, and drumming patterns, however, facilitate detection. Both the Black-backed Woodpecker and its congener the American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis) are easily approached, but the Black-backed often challenges an intruder with its Scream-Rattle-Snarl Call, one of the most distinctive and complex calls among Picoides woodpeckers. Three toes instead of four and, in males, a yellow crown patch instead of red, distinguish both the Black-backed and American Three-toed woodpeckers from other North American woodpeckers.

This species’ dependence on landscapes that experience regular fire and other large-scale forest disturbances is well known and exemplified by studies across its range: Alaska (Murphy and Lehnhausen 1998 Murphy, E. C. and W. A. Lehnhausen. (1998). Density and foraging ecology of woodpeckers following a stand-replacement fire. Journal of Wildlife Management 62:1359-1372. Close ), Washington (Latif et al. 2013 Latif, Q. S., V. A. Saab, J. G. Dudley, and J. P. Hollenbeck (2013). Ensemble modeling to predict habitat suitability for a large-scale disturbance specialist. Ecology and Evolution 3:4348-4364. Close ), Oregon (Cahall and Hayes 2009 Cahall, R. E., and J. P. Hayes (2009). Influences of postfire salvage logging on forest birds in the Eastern Cascades, Oregon, USA. Forest Ecology and Management 257:1119-1128. Close , Russell et al. 2009b Russell, R. E., V. A. Saab, J. J. Rotella and J. G. Dudley. (2009b). Detection probabilities of woodpecker nests in mixed conifer forests in Oregon. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 121 (1):82-88. Close , Latif et al. 2013 Latif, Q. S., V. A. Saab, J. G. Dudley, and J. P. Hollenbeck (2013). Ensemble modeling to predict habitat suitability for a large-scale disturbance specialist. Ecology and Evolution 3:4348-4364. Close ), California (Hanson and North 2008 Hanson, C. T., and M. P. North (2008). Postfire woodpecker foraging in salvage-logged and unlogged forests of the Sierra Nevada. Condor 110(4):777–782. Close , Saracco et al. 2011 Saracco, J. F., R. B. Siegel and R. L. Wilkerson. (2011). Occupancy modeling of Black-backed Woodpeckers on burned Sierra Nevada forests. Ecosphere 2 (3):art31. Close , Seavy et al. 2012 Seavy, N. E., R. D. Burnett and P. J. Taille. (2012). Black-backed Woodpecker nest-tree preference in burned forests of the Sierra Nevada, California. Wildlife Society Bulletin 36 (4):722-728. Close , Tarbill et al. 2015 Tarbill, G. L., P. N. Manley, and A. M. White (2015). Drill, baby, drill: The influence of woodpeckers on post-fire vertebrate communities through cavity excavation. Journal of Zoology 296:95–103. Close ), Idaho (Saab et al. 2004 Saab, V. A., J. Dudley, and W. L. Thompson (2004). Factors influencing occupancy of nest cavities in recently burned forests. Condor 106:20-36. Close , Dudley and Saab 2007 Dudley, J. G. and V. A. Saab. (2007). Home range size of Black-backed Woodpeckers in burned forests of southwestern Idaho. Western North American Naturalist 67 (4):593-600. Close , Saab et al. 2009 Saab, V. A., R. E. Russell, and J. G. Dudley (2009). Nest-site selection by cavity-nesting birds in relation to postfire salvage logging. Forest Ecology and Management 257:151-159. Close , Saab et al. 2011 Saab, V. A., R. E. Russell, J. Rotella, and J. G. Dudley (2011). Modeling nest survival of cavity-nesting birds in relation to postfire salvage logging. Journal of Wildlife Management 75:794–804. Close , Dudley and Saab 2007 Dudley, J. G. and V. A. Saab. (2007). Home range size of Black-backed Woodpeckers in burned forests of southwestern Idaho. Western North American Naturalist 67 (4):593-600. Close , Dudley et al. 2012 Dudley, J. G., V. A. Saab and J. P. Hollenbeck. (2012). Foraging-habitat selection of Black-backed Woodpeckers in forest burns of southwestern Idaho. Condor 114 (2):348-357. Close , Latif et al. 2013 Latif, Q. S., V. A. Saab, J. G. Dudley, and J. P. Hollenbeck (2013). Ensemble modeling to predict habitat suitability for a large-scale disturbance specialist. Ecology and Evolution 3:4348-4364. Close ), Alberta (Hoyt and Hannon 2002 Hoyt, J. S. and S. J. Hannon. (2002). Habitat associations of Black-backed and Three-toed woodpeckers in the boreal forest of Alberta. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 32 (10):1881-1888. Close , Koivula and Schmiegelow 2007 Koivula, M. J. and F. K. A. Schmiegelow. (2007). Boreal woodpecker assemblages in recently burned forested landscapes in Alberta, Canada: Effects of post-fire harvesting and burn severity. Forest Ecology and Management 242 (2-3):606-618. Close ), Montana (Hutto and Gallo 2006 Hutto, R. L., and S. M. Gallo (2006). The effects of postfire salvage logging on cavity-nesting birds. Condor 108:817-831. Close ), Wyoming (Vierling et al. 2008 Vierling, K. T., L. B. Lentile and N. Nielsen-Pincus. (2008). Preburn characteristics and woodpecker use of burned coniferous forests. Journal of Wildlife Management 72 (2):422-427. Close ), South Dakota (Bonnot et al. 2008 Bonnot, T. W., M. A. Rumble and J. J. Millspaugh. (2008). Nest success of Black-backed Woodpeckers in forests with mountain pine beetle outbreaks in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Condor 110 (3):450-457. Close , Bonnot et al. 2009 Bonnot, T. W., J. J. Millspaugh and M. A. Rumble. (2009). Multi-scale nest-site selection by Black-backed Woodpeckers in outbreaks of mountain pine beetles. Forest Ecology and Management 259 (2):220-228. Close , Rota et al. 2014a Rota, C. T., J. J. Millspaugh, M. A. Rumble, C. P. Lehman and D. C. Kesler. (2014a). The role of wildfire, prescribed fire, and mountain pine beetle infestations on the population dynamics of Black-backed Woodpeckers in the Black Hills, South Dakota. PLOS One 9 (4):e94700. Close , Rota et al. 2014b Rota, C. T., M. A. Rumble, J. J. Millspaugh, C. P. Lehman and D. C. Kesler. (2014b). Space-use and habitat associations of Black-backed Woodpeckers (Picoides arcticus) occupying recently disturbed forests in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Forest Ecology and Management 313:161-168. Close ), and Québec (Nappi and Drapeau 2009 Nappi, A. and P. Drapeau. (2009). Reproductive success of the Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) in burned boreal forests: Are burns source habitats? Biological Conservation 142 (7):1381-1391. Close , Nappi and Drapeau 2011 Nappi, A. and P. Drapeau. (2011). Pre-fire forest conditions and fire severity as determinants of the quality of burned forests for deadwood-dependent species: The case of the Black-backed Woodpecker. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 41 (5):994-1003. Close ). Recent studies revealed the importance of unburned forests for the species (Tremblay 2009 Tremblay, J. A. (2009). Écologie de nidification du pic à dos noir (Picoides arcticus) en forêt boréale non brûlée, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi. Close , Fogg et al. 2014 Fogg, A. M., L. J. Roberts and R. D. Burnett. (2014). Occurrence patterns of Black-backed Woodpeckers in green forest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, USA. Avian Conservation and Ecology 9 (2):3. Close , Tremblay et al. 2014 Tremblay, J. A., J. Ibarzabal, J.-P. L. Savard and S. Wilson. (2014). Influence of old coniferous habitat on nestling growth of Black-backed Woodpeckers Picoides arcticus. Acta Ornithologica 49 (2):273-279. Close , Tremblay et al. 2015a Tremblay, J. A., J. Ibarzabal and J.-P. L. Savard. (2015a). Contribution of unburned boreal forests to the population of Black-backed Woodpecker in eastern Canada. Écoscience 22 (2-4):145-155. Close , Tremblay et al. 2015b Tremblay, J. A., J.-P. L. Savard and J. Ibarzabal. (2015b). Structural retention requirements for a key ecosystem engineer in conifer-dominated stands of a boreal managed landscape in eastern Canada. Forest Ecology and Management 357:220-227. Close ), and prompted questions about significance of beetle outbreaks on species demography (Bonnot et al. 2008 Bonnot, T. W., M. A. Rumble and J. J. Millspaugh. (2008). Nest success of Black-backed Woodpeckers in forests with mountain pine beetle outbreaks in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Condor 110 (3):450-457. Close , Rota et al. 2014a Rota, C. T., J. J. Millspaugh, M. A. Rumble, C. P. Lehman and D. C. Kesler. (2014a). The role of wildfire, prescribed fire, and mountain pine beetle infestations on the population dynamics of Black-backed Woodpeckers in the Black Hills, South Dakota. PLOS One 9 (4):e94700. Close ). Irruptive movements of Black-backed Woodpeckers into southeastern Canada and the northeastern U.S. have been well documented, and demonstrate this species’ remarkable ability to travel long distances (Van Tyne 1926 Van Tyne, J. (1926). An unusual flight of Arctic Three-toed Woodpeckers. Auk 43:469-474. Close , West and Speirs 1959 West, J. D. and J. M. Speirs. (1959). The 1956-1957 invasion of three-toed woodpeckers. Wilson Bulletin 71:348-363. Close , Yunick 1985 Yunick, R. P. (1985). A review of recent irruptions of the Black-backed Woodpecker and Three-toed Woodpecker in eastern North America. Journal of Field Ornithology 56:138-152. Close ), which seems to be linked with juvenile dispersal (Lowe et al. in prep.).

A recent study on the species' genetics indicated that the Oregon Cascades-California and Black Hills populations could be distinct from the boreal population (Pierson et al. 2010 Pierson, J. C., F. W. Allendorf, V. Saab, P. Drapeau and M. K. Schwartz. (2010). Do male and female Black-backed Woodpeckers respond differently to gaps in habitat? Evolutionary Applications 3 (3):263-278. Close ). These two populations are isolated, face habitat restriction, and were recently petitioned to be listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (U.S.; Hanson et al. 2012 Hanson, C. T., K. Coulter, J. Augustine and D. Short. (2012). Petition to list the Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) as threatened or endangered under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Close ). Future studies that should prove especially useful in understanding the Black-backed Woodpecker’s unique relationship to boreal forest disturbance dynamics include (1) dynamics of dispersal and demographic rates, (2) gene flow and genetic structure among populations, (3) wintering ecology, (4) spatial and temporal pattern of pulse-resource interactions on demography, (5) impacts of forest harvesting, and (6) impacts of climate change.