Eurasian wryneck

[Blaze]

I wouldn’t have expected them to be in the same family as woodpeckers.

When I first saw it, my first reaction was "juvenile woodpecker" but as soon as I saw the way it moved, I realised it wasn't. It also has a sharper pointed beak (as OH found out !). I wouldn't have expected your numbers 4 and 5 to be in the woodpecker family but wasn't surprised to learn that the wryneck was.

They're more unusual in the UK being birds of passage rather than resident and here in Brittany, it's also just a bird of passage generally at the end of the summer.

I was really pleased to be able to learn a bout this bird and I doubt I'd be lucky enough to see it again. Their camouflage is so good, they're difficult to see as it is !

[Loup-garou]

Did the RSP not mention the Black Woodpecker? We have had them several times over the years a very striking, satanic looking bird.

[Polly]

On google it says:


“Black woodpecker -
Distribution and habitat. The range of the black woodpecker spreads east from Spain across the whole of Europe, excluding Great Britain, Ireland, and northern Scandinavia.“

[Loup-garou]

Ah! Certainly, I never saw one in the UK despite living in Epping Forest and rural Hampshire.

[Yonner]

We’ve had tree creepers and nuthatches in the garden, but seen none this year. Wasn’t even aware of the black woodpecker!

[Blaze]

We also had black woodpeckers, tree creepers and nuthatches at our old place but we were surrounded by forest, so it wasn't surprising.

[exile]

My friends who are definite twitchers always came to the continent hoping to catch sight of a Black Woodpecker, so I think they must be rare and/or restricted to very particular remote areas of the UK.

FWIW my ancient copy of a field guide to birds of Britain and Europe does not show the Black Woodpecker as being in the UK. Equally the only time I ever saw one was from our garden and we are just outside of the area shown.