What primary food source dictates the wryneck's summer diet percentage, setting its niche?

Social insects, primarily ants, larvae, and pupae, making up over 90% of the diet.

The wryneck occupies a unique ecological space within the Picidae family largely due to its highly specialized diet, which heavily favors social insects. Specifically, ants, their larvae, and their pupae constitute the overwhelming majority of its food intake during the summer months, often exceeding ninety percent. Because their bills are less robust for drilling hard timber compared to true woodpeckers seeking beetles, they utilize specialized probing techniques. This strong reliance on ants means that the availability of large ant colonies can be a more significant factor determining the wryneck’s local distribution than the presence of mature trees necessary for nesting.