Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker

Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker

Picoides tridactylus

Silhouette: Gareth Monger · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Triglav National Park

In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%

11 Verified sightings at Triglav National Park From 2019 to 2026
334 In all 5 parks
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker

The Eurasian three-toed woodpecker (Picoides tridactylus) is a medium-sized woodpecker that is found from northern Europe across northern Asia to Japan. The Eurasian three-toed woodpecker was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He coined the binomial name Picus tridactylus. The type locality is Sweden. The specific epithet is from the Ancient Greek tridaktulos meaning "three-toed" (tri- is "three-" and daktulos is toe). The species is now placed in the genus Picoides that was introduced by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lacépède in 1799. The Eurasian three-toed woodpecker was formerly considered conspecific with the American three-toed woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis).

Eight subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →

Sounds

Pecking0:46

Sweden · 2026

© Lars Edenius · XC1076853 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Drumming0:39

Sweden · 2025

© Dag Österlund · XC1009129 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:27

Sweden · 2023

© Thomas Bergman · XC811751 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~20%
2 Tatra National Park 🇸🇰 Slovakia
~10%
3 Plitvice Lakes National Park 🇭🇷 Croatia
<5%
4 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
5 Triglav National Park 🇸🇮 Slovenia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Novosibirsk 🇷🇺 Russia
~10%
2 Saint Petersburg 🇷🇺 Russia
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker in Triglav National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker sighting in Triglav National Park on a given day, based on 11 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 91st most-seen of the 105 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker in Triglav National Park?

April

In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker in Triglav National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May to March, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker?

Between noon and 3 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Triglav National Park the best place to see a Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker?

5th of 5

Of the 5 parks where we can rate Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker sightings, Triglav National Park ranks 5th at under 5%. The best odds are in Białowieża National Park (Poland, about 20%), Tatra National Park (Slovakia, about 10%) and Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia, under 5%).

Which relatives of the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker live in Triglav National Park?

Same family: Picidae

The closest relatives of the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker that you can see in Triglav National Park (family Picidae, Woodpeckers) are Great Spotted Woodpecker (about 30%), Black Woodpecker (about 20%) and Green Woodpecker (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker is recorded against all the birds logged in Triglav National Park (11 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.

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