The lesser spotted woodpecker is the smallest and least common of the three woodpeckers that are resident in Britain.The male is distinguished from the female by his bright red crown. It tends to nest and feed higher up and is quieter in its tapping.here to see them. You can find it in open woods, copses, parkland, gardens and orchards, but it tends to frequent the tops of trees, searching for larvae, spiders and wood-boring insects on smaller branches.