Cinnamon Woodpecker
Celeus loricatus
One of several species of mostly rufous woodpeckers with a crest. On Cinnamon, look for pale off-white belly with black scaling, and uniformly rufous head and back. Sexes mostly similar; male has red mustache stripe. Mainly a forest bird, found singly or in pairs, usually at middle levels or in the canopy. Listen for series of loud breathy whistles descending in pitch, similar to several other species in this genus.
Identification
The cinnamon woodpecker is about 19 to 23 cm (7.5 to 9.1 in) long and weighs 74 to 83 g (2.6 to 2.9 oz). Males and females have the same plumage except on their faces. Both sexes' heads are rufous with a bushy crest and black streaks on the crown. Males have a red chin, throat, and malar with black streaks, and females are the same rufous there as on the rest of their head. Both sexes of adults of the nominate subspecies C. l. loricatus have dark rufous upperparts with narrow black bars. Their flight feathers are blackish with wide rufous bars. The top side of their tail is black with wide buff to whitish bars. Their upper breast is light rufous with black edges and tips to the feathers; the rest of their underparts are paler buff with bold black arrowhead-shaped marks. Their medium-long bill is grayish to yellowish, their iris red, and their legs gray. Juveniles are very similar to adults but with dusky mottling on the throat and irregular markings on their underparts.<p>Subspecies C. l. diversus is the largest. It has more red and less black on the throat and is a stronger cinnamon color than the nominate. It has narrow black bars above, more widely spaced markings below, and a yellower bill. C. l. mentalis is similar to diversus but paler and with less barring above and below. C. l. innotatus is even paler than mentalis with weak or no barring on the upperparts and plain or lightly spotted underparts.
Taxonomy
The cinnamon woodpecker has these four subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Celeus loricatus
- Authority
- (Reichenbach, 1854)
- Order
- Piciformes
- Family
- Picidae
- Genus
- Celeus
Range and habitat
The subspecies of cinnamon woodpecker are found thus:<p>The cinnamon woodpecker mostly inhabits the interior of humid to wet forest, and occurs only rarely in drier areas. It occasionally is found along the forest edge and in more open landscapes like treed pastures, secondary forest, and clearings. In elevation it ranges from sea level to 760 m (2,500 ft) in Costa Rica and Panama, to 1,500 m (4,900 ft) in Colombia, and to 800 m (2,600 ft) in Ecuador.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The cinnamon woodpecker is a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The cinnamon woodpecker's primary food is ants and termites; it also eats fruit such as bananas. It usually forages singly or in pairs but does occasionally join mixed-species feeding flocks. In the forest interior it mostly forages near or in the canopy but hunts lower in more open areas. It usually pecks to get its prey but also gleans.<p>The cinnamon woodpecker's breeding season is March to May in Costa Rica and January to April in Colombia; it has not been defined elsewhere. Both sexes excavate the nest cavity, in a living or recently dead tree, and typically between 6 and 9 m (20 and 30 ft) above the ground. The clutch size, incubation period, time to fledging, and details of parental care are not known.<p>The cinnamon woodpecker's distinctive call is "a loud and far-carrying 'wheeét!-wheeét-wheet-it', sometimes with an introductory 'chuweeo'." Other vocalizations are a "sharp, descending rolling chatter when agitated", a "chikikikiít", "tititit-toò", and "chweé-titit". Its drumming is slow and short.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Spot-necked Babbler
Stachyris strialata
A small but robust babbler; shy and social like most of its relatives, it moves about noisily through the undergrowth in pairs or flocks. Attractive and distinctive if seen well; rufous-tinged brown with a white throat, a broad white crescent under the eye, and a cluster of scaly white speckles on the neck. Found in hill and montane forest, where it frequently joins mixed feeding flocks foraging in the undergrowth. Song is a pleasant three-note series of high whistles: “tee-dee-tah!”. Gives typical babbler chatter; this species has a distinctly wet rattle.
Sooty Flycatcher
Artomyias fuliginosa
Unusual small, chunky flycatcher. At a distance looks entirely dark, but a good view reveals a chocolate brown base color and paler brown streaking on the underparts. Has long, pointed wings and looks like a bit like a swallow in flight. Found in rainforest, where it perches up on dead trees, especially at the forest edge and around clearings. Often in small groups. Not very vocal, but does give a quiet, variable song of squeaks, whistles, and trills. Easily separated from other flycatchers by very dark plumage and unusual habits.
African Oystercatcher
Haematopus moquini
A plump, coastal shorebird that is glossy black in plumage with salmon-red legs and reddish eye, eye-ring, and bill. The juvenile is duller, with pink-brown bill and grayish-pink legs. Conspicuous on rocky coastlines and sandy shores, where it feeds on invertebrates like mussels, limpets, and worms. It is often first detected by its distinctive, high-pitched piping “pleek” and “peeka-peeka” alarm calls. Similar Eurasian Oystercatcher differs from African Oystercatcher by its white belly and throat.
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