Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker

• It is one of the very few woodpeckers in the world with only three toes: most woodpeckers have four, arranged zygodactylously.
• It is a glacial relict in southern Europe: its southern populations were left isolated in the mountains as the ice retreated.
• It is a cold-adapted species, which makes it especially vulnerable to warming: modelling projects that it will lose on average 90% of its suitable habitat in the Balkans.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)

Habitat and environment

Widely distributed across northern Europe. In the south of the continent it is a glacial relict confined to high mountain forests: in the Balkan peninsula its distribution is limited to those upland habitats

Birth weight

Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent

Size at birth

Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent

Sexual maturity

1 year

Gestation / incubation

11-14 days of incubation

Litter / clutch size

3-5 eggs per clutch

Sources consulted: IUCN Red List; estudio de modelización de distribución de especies sobre el impacto del cambio climático en los Balcanes (Animals/NCBI, 2024); SEO/BirdLife

Best time: All year round in boreal and mountain forests