Sapsucker is one of a group of birds of the woodpecker family. It lives only in North America. Sapsuckers are so called because part of their diet includes sap from trees. They get this sap by making small holes called wells in the bark. They also feed on insects attracted to the sap and on ants and wild fruit. The common sapsucker in the East is the yellow-bellied sapsucker. The male has a bright scarlet crown and throat, and black upper parts with white markings. This sapsucker nests in the northern United States and Canada. In the winter, it flies as far south as Central America. It nests in holes in trees. The female lays three to seven pure white eggs. The western red-breasted sapsucker lives on the Pacific Coast. The adults of both sexes have a red crown, throat, and breast. Williamson’s sapsucker is found in mountain regions of the western United States.
Sapsuckers have much the same habits as woodpeckers but sometimes injure trees. Williamson’s sapsucker, however, does little damage to trees.
