The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker has been in serious decline four at least four decades. Ken Smith and Linda Smith outline what we have learned about its conservation status and the prospects for the species.
The sight and sound of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dryobates minor (LSW) has become a rare thrill for any birdwatcher in the UK.
Only slightly bigger than a House Sparrow Passer domesticus, these small, essentially black and white woodpeckers spend most of their time high in the canopy of broadleaf trees, gleaning and excavating invertebrates from the smallest of branches.