Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) [XC72916]
by Jonathon Jongsma from Logan, Cache County, Utah, United States (alarm call)
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) [XC89855]
by Mike Nelson from Audubon Kern River Preserve, Weldon, CA, United States (call, song)
Subspecies
Most closely related to Nuttall's Woodpecker (Dryobates nuttallii) and Ladder-backed Woodpecker (Dryobates scalaris), and has hybridized with former. DNA analyses also indicate possible relationship with Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor) of the Old World. Further study is required. Nominate subspecies and medianus intergrade widely in central USA. Clinal variation in size, decreasing from north to south. Additional named subspecies nelsoni (Alaska to Alberta) and microleucus (Newfoundland) considered unacceptable.
The following 7 subspecies are recognised:
medianus (Swainson, 1832) - Central Alaska and Canada (east of Rockies, from southern Mackenzie and Alberta) east to southern Quebec and Newfoundland, and southern in USA to Nebraska and Virginia.