ericgbirder's Identifications

Female Nuttal’s Woodpecker. Link to Male for comparison: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/187417851

Nuttall's Woodpecker (Dryobates nuttallii) Small woodpecker, 19cm (7.5 inches) long, in the Woodpeckers
(Picidae) family. Only the male Nuttall's Woodpecker has red at the back of the crown. White outer tail feathers are sparsely spotted rather than barred. Nasal tufts are white. Compared to Ladder-backed, it has more black on face, white bars on back are narrower with more extensive solid black just below the nape. Habitat is Oak woodland foothills and canyons. Year round local resident in Coast Live Oak woodland with streams and the Salinas River nearby. Diet is mostly insects. Feeds on a wide variety of insects, especially beetles, also caterpillars, spiders, ants, true bugs. Also eats some nuts, seeds, fruits, berries. Despite a close association with oaks, it eats only a small numbers of acorns.
Sample sound recordings and range map of Nuttall's Woodpecker below.

Bird songs and sound recordings from around the world: https://xeno-canto.org/explore?query=Dryobates%20nuttallii

Audubon Guide to North American Birds https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/nuttalls-woodpecker

National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, ed. Jon L. Dunn, 7th ed., 2017. pp. 312-313.

National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America, ed. Jon L. Dunn, 2008, pp. 250-251.

Monterey Birds, Don Roberson, 2nd ed. 2002, sponsored by Monterey Peninsula Audubon Society, p. 306.

E Bird https://ebird.org/explore and https://ebird.org/species/nutwoo/

Merlin Bird ID (great app available for Iphones) by The Cornell Lab (Bird ID help for 8,500+ species) https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

The Cornell Lab (Birds in U.S. and Canada) https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ (enter common name)

Comprehensive Feather I.D. tools and more: https://foundfeathers.org/resources/

Found Feathers (Worldwide): https://www.fws.gov/lab/featheratlas/idtool.php