Great Spotted Woodpecker / Dendrocopus major / Morchnagaire brac

Great Spotted Woodpecker / Dendrocopus major / Morchnagaire brac

A coloniser to Eastern Ireland since 2005, the Great Spotted Woodpecker is a medium sized bird and a welcome resident in Castlewellan Forest Park. The loud drumming that is heard during the spring could be individuals making a nest by boring a hole into a tree, feeding on invertabrates on the bark, males declaring their territory or even feeding on tree sap.

Castlewellan’s woodpeckers are most often found in the woodland winding up to the top of Slievenaslat; a good incentive to make your way to the top!