Hemicircus
| Hemicircus | ||||||||||
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Round-tailed woodpecker ( Hemicircus canente ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Hemicircus | ||||||||||
| Swainson , 1837 |
Hemicircus is a genus of birds in the family of the woodpeckers (Picidae). The genus includes two very small and very different from the usual habitus of the woodpeckers species that inhabit large parts of South and Southeast Asia. Both species are tied to forests. As far as is known, the diet consists of termites, ants and other insects, but also of fruits. Apparently the population of both species is declining,butthe IUCN still classifies them as harmless (“least concern”).
description
The two species are very small, round woodpeckers with a thin neck, a large head with a pronounced hood and a very short, rounded and only slightly stiff tail, which is only slightly bent forward towards the tip. The medium-long beak is fairly straight, chisel-shaped and pointed and broad at the base. The fourth (outer) toe is longer than the two front toes, the first (innermost) toe is about half as long as this. A resin-like substance was detected in the dorsal plumage of both species , the origin of which is unclear; Corresponding glands have not yet been found on the birds.
Overall, these woodpeckers are colored quite contrastingly in black and white. They show a clear sexual dimorphism in terms of coloration . Males of the short-tailed woodpecker have a red crest that the females lack. In the second species, the round-tailed woodpecker, the sexual dimorphism is exceptional; Males have a plain black head, while females have a white forehead and anterior skull.
Systematics
The genus includes two types:
- Short-tailed woodpecker ( Hemicircus concretus ( Temminck 1821))
- Heart-spotted woodpecker ( hemicircus canente ( Lesson 1832))
literature
- Hans Winkler , David Christie and David Nurney: Woodpeckers. A Guide to the Woodpeckers, Piculets, and Wrynecks of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge 1995, ISBN 0-395-72043-5 , pp. 13, 162-163 and 389-391.
