Birders get in a flap after orange woodpecker spotted
The Great Spotted Woodpecker, has a crimson abdomen and the adult male has a crimson spot on the nape. So why is one clearly orange in both places?
Richard Hampshire, Yorkshire Water's warden at Tophill Low nature reserve, near Driffield, says: "He's become a bit of a celebrity for bird enthusiasts who don't believe he exists and come to see his markings."
One theory was it was an extremely rare visitor, the Syrian woodpecker, rather than a variation of the native species, but it is thought likely the odd colouring is a genetic variation.
Retired teacher Pat Crofton, of Stamford Bridge, near York, took his picture at Tophill Low.