Green Woodpecker

🔍 Overview

A colourful, ground-feeding woodpecker, frequently seen on lawns in Sussex, known locally as the “yaffle.”

🪶 Key Identification Features

Size: Large (31 cm)

Plumage: Green body, red crown, black around eyes/yellow rump

Distinctive Marks: Red mustache stripe in males

Bill: Long and pointed

Tail: Stiff

Flight: Slow, strong wingbeats

🗺️ Habitat & Distribution

Common in parks, woodland edges, golf courses, and gardens—especially where ant hills are available.

🎶 Voice & Behaviour

Loud laughing “yaffle” laugh. Often seen probing lawn for ants.

🍴 Diet

Ants and larvae.

📸 Birding Tip

Watch open grassy areas. Listen for laughter, and look for the bird pecking for ants.