Dryocopus

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Dryocopus
White-bellied woodpecker (Dryocopus javensis)

White-bellied woodpecker ( Dryocopus javensis )

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Woodpecker birds (Piciformes)
Family : Woodpeckers (Picidae)
Subfamily : Real woodpeckers (Picinae)
Genre : Dryocopus
Scientific name
Dryocopus
Boie , 1826

Dryocopus is a genus of the woodpeckers (Picidae), which is represented in Eurasia and the Americas with 6 species. Of these, only the black woodpecker occurs in Europe . New molecular genetic studies show that the genus is paraphyletic and therefore requires a taxonomic revision. Therefore, the removal of the five Nearctic / Neotropical large woodpeckers from is Dryocopus and its summary in the 1858 by Spencer Fullerton Baird for the Pileated Woodpecker introduced species Hylatomus proposed. In addition to the black woodpecker, Dryocopus would onlyincludethe two East Asian species, white-bellied woodpeckerand Andaman woodpecker.

description

They are medium-sized to very large woodpeckers, the smallest species is the wave-eared woodpecker with a body length of 27–28 cm and a weight of about 124 g, the largest the black woodpecker with a body length of 45–55 cm and a weight of usually 260 -340 g. The species show at least one elongated rear parietal plumage and usually a pronounced feather bonnet. The long and stiff tail is bent forward at the end, the middle pair of control feathers has strong and pointed ends. The beak is long, strong and pointed to a chisel shape. The species have four toes, the fourth (outer) toe is about as long as the two front toes, the first toe about half as long.

These woodpeckers are predominantly black in color, often with extensive white plumage areas and always with red areas on the head. The head often shows white areas in addition to red. The species show a more or less conspicuous sexual dimorphism in terms of color ; the differences concern the color of the skull and / or the beard.

distribution and habitat

The distribution of the genus Dryocopus includes Eurasia and North and South America. Of the 7 species of the genus, 3 inhabit the Neotropics , two in tropical Asia and a large part of Eurasia and North America. Only the black woodpecker occurs in Europe . All species inhabit forests or tree-rich landscapes with large trees.

Systematics

Black Woodpecker ( Dryocopus martius )

The genus Dryocopus includes six species. The species rank of Dryocopus fuscipennis - littoral woodpecker is not generally recognized.

The closest relatives of the Dryocopus species were traditionally considered to be the woodpeckers of the genus Campephilus , which are common in the Americas and have a similar habit and way of life . The two genera were therefore, for example, by Winkler et al. summarized in a tribe Campephilini.

According to a molecular genetic investigation including three of the 6 species of the genus Dryocopus and two of the 11 species of the genus Campephilus , the two genera are not closely related to each other, and the similarities are therefore based on convergence . According to this study, sister taxon of the genus Dryocopus is the very similar genus Mulleripicus, which is widespread in Southeast Asia . This relationship was also confirmed by a further molecular genetic investigation. The Latin American Celeus woodpeckers and the extinct genus Australopicus from the Pliocene of South Africa are more closely related to Dryocopus .

According to current molecular genetic studies, the genus Dryocopus is not monophyletic. The taxonomic consequence would be the separation of the five New World species and their combination in a sister genus , for which the generic name Hylatomus (Greek ὑλοτομος = woodcutter) introduced by Spencer Fullerton Baird for the helmeted woodpecker is available.

Way of life

The Dryocopus species are pronounced "woodpeckers", which often punch large holes in the trunks of strong trees with their very powerful bills or cut off their bark, but they also dig up the large nests of ground-living ants. In addition to wood-dwelling insects such as ants and beetle larvae, various fruits and nuts are usually also part of the food spectrum. The flight is vigorous. The species often utter loud calls, and all species drum. The drum rolls can be heard for miles.

swell

Individual evidence

  1. ^ TiF - Piciformes Checklist
  2. ↑ Winkler, H. & Christie, DA (2002). Pileated Woodpecker (Hylatomus pileatus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, DA & de Juana, E. (eds.) (2013). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (Retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/56286 on October 30, 2014).
  3. ↑ Winkler, H., Christie, DA & Kirwan, GM (2013). White-bellied Woodpecker (Dryocopus javensis). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, DA & de Juana, E. (eds.) (2013). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (accessed on http://www.hbw.com/node/56289 on October 30, 2014)
  4. ↑ Hans Winkler, David Christie, David Nurney: Woodpeckers. Pica Press, 1995. ISBN 1873403259 : p. 12
  5. ↑ Brett W. Benz, Mark B. Robbins and A. Townsend Peterson: Evolutionary history of woodpeckers and allies (Aves: Picidae): Placing key taxa on the phylogenetic tree. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 40, 2006: pp. 389-399
  6. ↑ Jérôme Fuchs, Jan I. Ohlson, Per GP Ericson, Eric Pasquet: Synchronous intercontinental splits between assemblages of woodpeckers suggested by molecular data. Zoologica Scripta 36, ​​No. 1, 2007: pp. 11-25
  7. ↑ Manegold & Louchart 2012, pp. 933–935.
  8. ↑ Winkler, H. & Christie, DA (2002). Black-bodied Woodpecker (Hylatomus schulzii). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, DA & de Juana, E. (eds.) (2013). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (Retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/56288 on October 31, 2014).

literature

Web links

Commons : Dryocopus  - collection of images, videos and audio files