The bird is a large green woodpecker with a bright red crown and a black moustache. Males have a red centre to the moustache stripe which is absent in females.

Suitable habitats for foraging include grassland, heaths, plantations, orchards and lawns. The nesting hole is larger but similar to those of the other woodpeckers. It may be a few feet above the ground or at the top of a tall tree; oaks, beeches, willows and fruit trees are the preferred nest trees.

Green woodpeckers will often forage in short grazed or mown permanent grasslands where the availability of ant nests is high.