Woodpeckers of the World: May 2014

Friday, 23 May 2014

Acorn Woodpecker granary.

An Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus at its 'granary'. Such food storage sites can be composed of 1000s of specially drilled holes in trees or wooden utility poles, each holding one acorn or nut - although none seem to be stored at the moment in this site. Taken in the USA by Peter Basterfield.

Wednesday, 21 May 2014

More samples from WOODPECKERS OF THE WORLD

Here are some pre-publication samples from the book WOODPECKERS OF THE WORLD from the website of the North American co-publisher: SAMPLE PAGES

Tuesday, 6 May 2014

Picid in Focus: male Blood-coloured Woodpecker

A superb male Blood-coloured Woodpecker Veniliornis sanguineus. Taken in Surinam, April 2014, by Jean-Louis Rousselle.

Background

Woodpeckers, the Picidae, are Piciformes, an order that includes some of the oldest avian lineages. The Piciformes probably originated about 60 million years ago in the Tertiary period and became distinct from their closest relatives some 50 million years ago. Depending upon which taxonomy is followed, and the fact that the status of some species is unclear, around 240-260 woodpecker species probably exist globally. The Picidae includes three subfamilies: Jynginae (wrynecks), Picumninae (piculets) and the Picinae, the “true woodpeckers”. In terms of size, behaviour, distribution and the habitats they use, the Picinae are a fairly diverse group of birds with six distinct tribes. They are widespread and found from sea-level to high-altitudes but absent from the Arctic, Antarctica, Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Madagascar and some other islands. Worldwide woodpeckers are usually, but not exclusively, associated with trees.