The Rocky Mountain and Great Basin representative of the yellow-bellied sapsucker complex, the red-naped sapsucker closely resembles the yellow­bellied sapsucker, and the 2 hybridize in southwestern Alberta; the red-naped also hybridizes with the red-breasted from British Columbia south to eastern California. Monotypic. Length 8".

Very similar in all plumages to the yellow-­bellied, but with slightly more red on the head. Adult male: the red crown is bordered by black, with a small red patch below black nape bar; the chin and throat are red, with the red color partially invading the black malar stripe that outlines the throat; the breast is black. Adult female: similar to male, but the chin is white (red on rare individual females), and the