Rufous-bellied Woodpecker
Dendrocopos hyperythrus
A beautiful woodpecker with three disjunct populations: an eastern one which breeds in northeastern China and Russia and winters in southeastern China, a western one in the Himalayas, and a southern one in southern mainland Southeast Asia. In all populations, note bright orange neck and belly, as well as black-and-white spotted wings. Bright red crown is found only on the male; the female has a patchy black and white one. Can be found in a wide range of foothill and lowland forest; favors mixed evergreen forests in the Himalayas, and open dry forest in Southeast Asia. Gives a range of rapid chattering calls and has a short, rapid drum which trails off towards the end.
Identification
The rufous-bellied woodpecker ranges in length from about 19 to 23 cm (7.5 to 9.1 in). The male has a red crown while the female has a black crown, speckled with white. Both sexes have a black mantle and back, while the wings are black barred with white. The upper tail is black, with some white barring on the outer two pairs of feathers. The face is white and the throat and underparts are a uniform cinnamon or rufous. The lower belly is black barred with white and the under-tail converts are red or pink. The iris is chestnut, the upper mandible of the beak is black and the lower mandible grey, and the legs are grey or olive.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Dendrocopos hyperythrus
- Authority
- (Vigors, 1831)
- Order
- Piciformes
- Family
- Picidae
- Genus
- Dendrocopos
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
It has a tongue that has a brushy tip that allows it to feed on sap. Sap is predominantly sought in the spring season while wood-boring and bark insects are taken at most other times. The same trees may be used for the extraction of sap from year to year.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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Gould's Toucanet
Selenidera gouldii
Beautiful small, multicolored toucan. Males have a black crown and underparts; in females, the black is replaced by chestnut. Note the black and orange patches on the bill. Inhabits lowland humid forest, seasonally flooded forest, gallery forest, and old second growth. Forages from middle levels to the canopy, usually in fruiting trees. Call is a deep and somewhat slow series of “ggrawnk” to “ggrraaw” notes, easily overlooked.
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Remarkable large woodpecker, mostly black with a red head and a large cream patch on the back. Females have a cream moustachial stripe and a black forehead. Occurs in open woodlands and savanna. The call is a nasal “pi-ow” and the drum is a double tap.
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