Woodpeckers of the World: April 2013

Monday, 22 April 2013

Picid in Focus: Crimson-bellied Woodpecker

Male Crimson-bellied Woodpecker Campephilus haematogaster. The sexes are fairly similar - females have a pale stripe down the sides of the neck which males lack. Photo taken in Peru in November 2012 by Gerard Gorman.

Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Picid in Focus: West Indian Woodpecker

Male West Indian Woodpecker Melanerpes superciliaris. Note that all the crown is red, females have black rear-crown and red only on the nape. Photo by Gerard Gorman, Cuba, March 2013.

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.

Monday, 29 April 2013

Sounds: Northern Flicker

Monday, 22 April 2013

Picid in Focus: Crimson-bellied Woodpecker

Saturday, 13 April 2013

Sounds: Cuban Green Woodpecker

Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Picid in Focus: West Indian Woodpecker