Abstract:In order to investigate how the Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) utilizing feeding patches in winter, we carried out field survey on the farmland shelterbelt in Wulateqianqi County, Inner Mongolia, in January 2011 and from February to March in 2012. Focal sampling and all-occurrences recording methods were undertaken to determine the foraging behaviors of Great Spotted Woodpecker in foraging patches. Principal component analysis was used to evaluate the patch quality. Correlation analysis between the patch quality and foraging behavior items, such as foraging times, residence time, successful foraging times and successful foraging rate was undertaken to reveal the affection of patch quality on the foraging behaviors of the birds. The results showed that there were significant differences in the birds’ foraging times, residence time, successful foraging times among different patches, but not in the successful foraging rate. Except for residence time, the differences of foraging behaviors between male and female were not significant. Patch quality had positively correlated with foraging times, residence time, successful foraging times, but not with the successful foraging rate. Great Spotted Woodpecker preferred to forage in high quality patches, not only foraging for longer time in them, but also selecting the patches much more frequently; the successful foraging rate was not affected by patch quality, that probably a survival instinct of them facing with different feeding environments.