Sphyrapicus nuchalis
Silhouette: Nancy Wyman (photo), John E. McCormack, Michael G. Harvey, Brant C. Faircloth, Nicholas G. Crawford, Travis C. Glenn, Robb T. Brumfield & T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The red-naped sapsucker (Sphyrapicus nuchalis) is a medium-sized North American woodpecker. Long thought to be a subspecies of the yellow-bellied sapsucker, it is now known to be a distinct species. The red-naped sapsucker is one of four North American woodpeckers in the genus Sphyrapicus. It has no subspecies. First described by Spencer Fullerton Baird in 1858, it was initially thought to be a subspecies of the yellow-bellied sapsucker. However, there are significant genetic differences between this species and the yellow-bellied sapsucker, and the American Ornithologists' Union recognized it as a distinct species in the seventh edition of its North American birds checklist, published in 1998. Genetic analysis has shown that the red-naped sapsucker is a sister species with (and very closely related to) the red-breasted sapsucker, and that these two species form a superspecies with the yellow-bellied sapsucker. All three species are known to hybridize with each other, with hybrids between red-naped and red-breasted sapsuckers proving particularly common.
The genus name Sphyrapicus is a combination of the Greek words sphura, meaning "hammer" and pikos, meaning "woodpecker... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glacier National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Rocky Mountain National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Guadalupe Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Zion National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Death Valley National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Banff National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 13 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 14 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Torreón | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 4 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Red-naped Sapsucker sighting in Rocky Mountain National Park on a given day, based on 1,373 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 41st most-seen of the 223 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and July
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Red-naped Sapsucker in Rocky Mountain National Park on a given day, against under 5% in October to March, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red-naped Sapsucker sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Red-naped Sapsucker sightings, Rocky Mountain National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Glacier National Park (United States, about 20%) and Grand Teton National Park (United States, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red-naped Sapsucker is recorded against all the birds logged in Rocky Mountain National Park (1,373 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
