Africa Wild

Bird of the Month - April 2014

WOODPECKERS

Birds with attractive patterns and colors, mostly found in trees looking for insects hammering on the bark. They have stiffened tail feathers essential for crawling up and around the trees and parrot-like feet, two toes to the front and two to the back, found by birds that spend most of their time on branches.

Discription from Birds of Africa South of the Sahara, Ian Sinclair and Peter Ryan:
"Distinctive feeders on tree branches, hammering off bark and probing for prey. Sexes differ in amount of red on crown in most species. Flight undulating. Many species use drumming as a non-vocal territorial signal. Key features for identification are face pattern, as well as whether the back is plain or barred and the underparts plain, spotted or streaked."

Southern Africa has 9 species of Woodpeckers.

Bennett's Woodpeckers - Campethera Bennettii (Bennettspeg)
Speckle-throated Woodpecker - Campethra Scriptoricauda (Tanzaniese Speg)
Golden-tailed Woodpecker - Campethra Abingoni (Goudstertspeg)
Knysa Woodpecker - Campethra Notata (Knysnaspeg)
Green-backed Woodpecker - Campethra Cailliautii (Little Spotted Woodpecker, Gevlekte Speg)
Ground Woodpekcer - Geocolaptes Olivaceus (Grondspeg)
Bearded Woodpecker - Dendropicos Namaquus (Baardspeg)
Cardinal Woodpecker - Dendropicos Fescescens (Kardinaalspeg)
Olive Woodpecker - Dendropicos Griseocephalus (Gryskopspeg)

Related to the Woodpeckers are the Red-throated Wryneck - Jynx Ruficollis (Draaihals), similar to Woodpeckers, but without stiffened tail feathers.

Not related to Woodpeckers are the Spotted Creeper - Salporis Spilontus (Boomkruiper), a songbird with similar behavior to Woodpeckers.

In Africa, South of the Sahara, there are 28 species of Woodpeckers.

Worldwide there are about 200 species in this family and many are under threat or endangerd due to habitat loss. Two species of woodpeckers, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker and the Imperial Woodpecker, have been considered extinct for about 30 years. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodpecker

Bennett's Woodpeckers from here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 93#p189993
Golden-tailed Woodpecker here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 55#p190555
Bearded Woodpecker from here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 06#p188906
Cardinal Woodpecker https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 79#p188879
Olive Woodpecker here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 72#p188872

European Woodpeckers from here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 77#p191777

Woodpecker Quiz here: https://africawild-forum.com/viewtopic.p ... 77#p188877

Golden-tailed Woodpecker - Campethera Abingoni (Goudstertspeg)

Male left and Female right



Photos from Biodiversity Explorer, Male: Neil Gray © http://www.graybirds.net/, Female: Trevor Hardaker © http://www.hardaker.co.za/

Information from: Roberts VII Multimedia Birds of Southern Africa

Identification:
The Golden-tailed Woodpecker weighs in at 70g and 21cm long and has streaked yellow underparts. The male’s malar stripe is dark red with black speckling and the females’ malar stripe is black with white speckles.

Status:
The Golden-tailed Woodpecker is a fairly common resident, sedentary and pairs remain together all year round.

Habitat:
They are found in most woodland types, including evergreen forests.

Distribution:
Gambia to Sudan, through the savanna belt to Southern Africa. In Southern Africa extends eastwards from central to north Namibia through Botswana to Zimbabwe, Mozambique and northern South Africa and as far south as KZN.

Food:
They mostly eat ants, termites and their eggs and pupae and also insects.

Call:
Very distinctive “hair” or “weea” call uttered by both sexes and drums weakly.

Breeding:
Golden-tailed Woodpeckers breeds Monogamous in a nest excavated in tree trunks with entrance holes 50-53mm wide.

Distribution map and for more information: http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/specie ... php?id=601



More information on the Golden-tailed Woodpeckers:
http://www.biodiversityexplorer.org/bir ... ingoni.htm

More pictures on the Golden-tailed Woodpeckers:
http://www.warwicktarboton.co.za/birdpgs/483GtWpk.html

Our resident garden Golden-tailed Woodpeckers, not easy to pics these guys, they never sit still...

Male


Female

Goldentailed Woodpecker - Margate Dec. 2013

Golden tailed woodpecker ( little woodpecker, many leaves )

Horrible pics but my only sighting of an Olive Woodpecker - Drakensberg 2010.

Female Olive Woodpecker, Giant's Castle, Drakensberg.

Cardinal Woodpecker Dendropicos fuscescens (Kardinaalspeg)


Female, Kruger National Park

Identification:
The Cardinal Woodpeckers have the typical woodpecker shape. They measure between 14 - 15 cm in length and have a stiff tails that support them against tree trunks and they move up and down. The beak is straight and pointed.
The back is olive with white spots. Below they are white with black streaks. The face is white except for the black malar stripe.
The adult male can be identified by his red hind crown and nape; the juvenile male has a red hindcrown and black nape. The female has a black nape and dark hindcrown. They have a small crest that is raised when they are excited.

Status:
Common resident.

Habitat:
The Cardinal Woodpecker frequents a wide variety of woodland and savanna habitats, from the edges of deserts to fringes if forests. Common in broadleafed woodland, thick forests, dry thornveld and gardens.

Distribution:
Widespread in most of Africa south of the Sahara. Extends from Senegambia through W Africa to S Sudan, N Ethiopia, Djibouti and NW Somalia, and southwards, including Zanzibar, to the Cape.

Food:
Their diet consists of insects, which they catch with their long tongue that darts forward to capture their prey.

Call:
Their calls are described as a high-pitched krrrek-krrrek-krrrek.

Breeding:
Cardinal woodpeckers breed in July-December. Both sexes excavate the nest, which is usually a hole in the underside of a tree branch, although nesting in wooden fence posts has also been recorded. There the female lays 1-3 eggs which are incubated by both sexes for 12-13 days. The chicks are cared for by both parents and fledge 27 days after hatching, but only become fully independent 1-2 months later.