In which type of tree can a woodpecker commonly live?

Woodpeckers are commonly associated with dead trees because these trees often provide the ideal habitat for them. Dead trees, sometimes referred to as "snags," have softer wood that is easier for woodpeckers to excavate when creating nesting cavities or searching for insects that may be living in the decaying wood. These trees also tend to attract a variety of insects that serve as a food source for woodpeckers.

While woodpeckers might occasionally use healthy live trees for foraging and nesting, it is the dead trees that are specifically valuable to them due to the easier access to food and the nesting opportunities they provide. Additionally, diseased trees could be useful as they may also be decaying, but dead trees generally offer a more reliable and safer environment for woodpeckers. Newly planted trees, on the other hand, do not provide the established habitat or food sources necessary for woodpeckers.