Arizona Woodpecker
Dryobates arizonae
This brown woodpecker is restricted to western Mexico; barely enters the U.S. in southern Arizona. Face pattern similar to Hairy Woodpecker but brown instead of black. Back is entirely brown with no white. Males show small red patch on back of head, absent on females. Brown spots and bars on underparts. Found in mountainous oak forest. Makes a squeaky "peek" call.
Identification
Arizona woodpeckers are nearly identical to Strickland's woodpeckers, growing to be about 7 to 8 inches (18 to 20 cm) in length. Their plumage is mainly brown and white in coloration, brown on top with a dark rump with white underparts speckled with brown spots. Arizona woodpeckers usually have white bars on their wings, and have two white stripes across their face which join with another white bar on their neck. Male Arizona woodpeckers also have a red patch on the nape of their head which is lacking on females.<p>The call of the Arizona woodpecker is a sharp, squeaky keech, and this species also gives a rattle call of descending, grating notes.
Taxonomy
This species is known in older field guides as a subspecies of Strickland's woodpecker. The 42nd supplement of the American Ornithologists Union checklist officially split Strickland's woodpecker into two species: the northern population in the Sierra Madre Occidental region (Arizona, L. arizonae) and the southern population in central Mexico (Strickland's, L. stricklandi). Some taxonomic authorities, including the American Ornithological Society, continue to place this species in the genus Picoides.
- Scientific name
- Dryobates arizonae
- Authority
- (Hargitt, 1886)
- Order
- Piciformes
- Family
- Picidae
- Genus
- Dryobates
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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