Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker
Yungipicus kizuki
This woodpecker is known to join 'mixed-species flocks,' traveling with tits and nuthatches to increase foraging efficiency and predator detection.
- Scientific name
- Yungipicus kizuki
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Piciformes › Picidae › Yungipicus
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Deciduous and coniferous forests, urban parks, and wooded gardens.
- Diet
- Insects, larvae, spiders, and occasionally seeds or berries.
- Range
- Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Eastern China, Southeastern Russia
- Size
- 13-15 cm in length; weight approximately 18-20g.
- Lifespan
- 3-5 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Deforestation and the removal of dead standing trees (snags) which are essential for nesting.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless and shy. Best observed from a distance with binoculars to avoid startling the bird. If found in an urban garden, provide water or suet. Ensure windows have bird-safe decals to prevent accidental collisions.
The Japanese pygmy woodpecker or pygmy woodpecker ( Yungipicus kizuki ) is a species of woodpecker. It is found in coniferous and deciduous forests in Russia, China, North Korea, South Korea and Japan. This species has also been placed in the genus Dendrocopos or Picoides . The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed it as a least-concern species.
Photo: Kim, Hyun-tae, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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