Woodpeckers of the World: Picid in Focus: Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius

Friday, 25 February 2011

Picid in Focus: Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius

This range of this species falls almost totally within the Western Palearctic. There are 4 races but they do not differ greatly in plumage. The sexes are not very dimorphic, both having red crowns, and are often being hard to separate in the field. It occurs in deciduous woodlands, particularly those with mature oaks. Photo taken in Austria by Thomas Hochebner.

1 comment:

JRandSue7 March 2011 at 20:13
Brilliant capture,outstanding Image
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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.