European green woodpecker

Picus viridis

The European green woodpecker (Picus viridis) is a bird found in France, Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, and 1 more countries. Woods and parks across Europe. It eats insects and other small invertebrates and fruit. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

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Scientific name	Picus viridis
Region	Europe
Found in	France, Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, and 1 more countries

🏡 Where the European green woodpecker lives

Woods and parks across Europe.

🍽️ What it eats

🐛 Insects & bugs90%
🍎 Fruit10%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Least ConcernThere are plenty of these birds.

💡 It often feeds on the ground, eating ants with a very long sticky tongue.

Hear the European green woodpecker

Recorded by Martin Billard (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC927450. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the European green woodpecker

Where does the European green woodpecker live?

The European green woodpecker lives in France, Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, and 1 more countries. Woods and parks across Europe.

What does the European green woodpecker eat?

insects and other small invertebrates (about 90%), fruit (about 10%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the European green woodpecker endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Europe

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.