Red-capped woodpecker
| Red-capped woodpecker | ||||||||||||
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Red capped woodpecker (female) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Melanerpes rubricapillus | ||||||||||||
| ( Cabanis , 1862) |
The red-crowned woodpecker ( Melanerpes rubricapillus ) is a species of bird from the family of woodpeckers (Picidae). The distribution area of this very small woodpecker species includes central and southern Central America and northern South America . The animals inhabit dry to moist, semi-open landscapes there. These woodpeckers eat many types of fruits and berries as well as insects and other invertebrates , especially ants, beetles, crickets and their larvae. The animals also drink nectar from large flowers. The species is common and is classified by the IUCN as "least concern".
description
Red cap woodpeckers are very small woodpeckers with a relatively long, slightly chisel-shaped, pointed beak, which is quite broad at the base. The ridge of the beak is bent downwards. The body length is about 16-18 cm, the weight 40-65 g. They are only slightly larger than a small woodpecker , but about twice as heavy. Like most woodpecker species, the species shows a clear sexual dimorphism in terms of coloration. Females are also slightly smaller and more short-billed than males.
In birds of the nominate form , the lower back, the rump and the upper tail-coverts are white. The entire remaining upper side including the wings is cross-banded in white on a black background. The wings are more brown-black with white tips, the white bands are limited to the feather bases and connected to a white field. The tail is black on top, only the two outermost control feathers also show white transverse bands on the outer flags. The sides of the head, neck and the entire underside of the trunk are predominantly monochrome, pale gray-reddish to pale brownish with a hint of olive or yellow. The leg fletching, the belly sides, the rear flanks as well as the more whitish under tail-coverts show a blackish, arrowhead-like banding on this ground. The middle of the abdomen is diffuse reddish to orange-red. The lower wings are brown with white transverse bands, as on the upper side, the hand wings also show a basal white spot on the lower side. The underside of the tail is a little lighter brown-black than the upper side with yellowish outer feathers and white markings that are also limited to the outer flags of the outermost pair of control feathers.
The beak is black, legs and toes are gray. The iris is red to brown, the eye ring gray-brown.
Males show a pale yellow zone at the base of the beak in front of the eye. The front skull is whitish, the rest of the skull is bright red, the back of the head and neck are more orange-red. Females lack the red color of the skull, the red color is paler and limited to the back of the head and neck.
Vocalizations
A number of calls are known for the species, above all a "churr, churr, krr-rrr" , which is often stretched with a modulated high tone and ends abruptly with a sharp sound. During courtship, “wicka, wicka” is called, these calls are similar to those of the Hoffmann woodpecker . Both sexes drum in the breeding season.
distribution and habitat
The distribution area includes central and southern Central America and northern South America . It extends north-south from Belize and Honduras to northern Colombia and from there east to Suriname . The total distribution area covers about 861,000 km².
The animals inhabit a wide range of dry to moist, semi-open landscapes, including open woodland, deciduous forests, dry forests, arid and semi-arid bushland, bushy clearings and mangroves , but also coconut plantations , parks and gardens. The species avoids the dense rainforest ; where this is cleared, it is often more frequent. Red cap woodpeckers occur in Costa Rica and Colombia from sea level to about 1600–1700 m, in Venezuela north of the Orinoco up to heights of 1900 m, south of the Orinoco up to 500 m.
Systematics
Four subspecies are recognized, three of which have only very small distribution areas:
- Melanerpes rubricapillus rubricapillus ( Cabanis , 1862); largest part of the distribution area.
- Melanerpes r. paraguanae ( Gilliard , 1940); Paraguaná peninsula in northern Venezuela. Long-tailed than the nominate form , the upper side is broadly banded with white, the belly spot is more golden yellow than orange-red. The middle of the tail shows pronounced white markings, the outer feathers, however, are mostly monochrome black. The forehead is pale yellow, a narrow area on the back of the head is, like the sides of the head, pale reddish brown and thus separates the red color of the upper part of the head from the red of the back of the head and the neck. However, individuals with this head markings also occur further east in northern South America.
- Melanerpes r. seductus Bangs , 1901; San Miguel Island in Panama . The subspecies is shorter-winged than the nominate form, the breast is slightly darker and the female shows more red on the back of the head.
- Melanerpes r. subfusculus ( Wetmore , 1957); Coiba Island in Panama. Slightly smaller than the nominate form; the underside is clearly darker; Chest and sides of the trunk are deep dark gray-brown.
behavior
Red cap woodpeckers are not very shy and quite loud woodpeckers. The animals live in pairs all year round, maintaining contact with each other by calling " churr ". What is unique among woodpeckers is that sleeping caves are often hatched backwards, tail first, possibly because many of these caves are small or in a horizontal branch.
nutrition
Most of the food is sought in trees, mostly at lower and medium heights. The animals also like to visit feeding stations. These woodpeckers eat many types of fruits and berries as well as insects and other invertebrates , especially ants, beetles, crickets and their larvae. The animals also drink nectar from large flowers. The food is obtained by chopping into bark, by poking holes and crevices, and by reading the food from trunks, branches and leaves. The skin of larger fruits is pierced in order to get to the inside, the animals also clamp fruits in cracks in order to then work on them with their beak.
Reproduction
Red cap woodpeckers live in pairs. The breeding season is different depending on the distribution area. In Costa Rica and Panama the species breeds from February to June or July at the latest, in Colombia from May to June, in Venezuela from May to November and on Tobago from March to July. The caves are mostly created in trunks of thin dead trees and in dead branches at heights between 3 and 23 m, occasionally also in large cacti or in fence posts. Both partners participate in the cave construction. The clutch comprises 3–4 eggs, from which only two young hatch normally. The breeding season is only about 10 days, the nestling period 31–33 days. The young birds stay with their parents for about a month after they leave. Second broods occur occasionally.
Existence and endangerment
There is no information on the size of the world population, the species is common in most of its range and the population is apparently increasing. It is therefore classified by the IUCN as safe ("least concern").
swell
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Red Cap Woodpecker at BirdLife International . Retrieved April 8, 2010
- ↑ Hans Winkler, David Christie and David Nurney: Woodpeckers. A Guide to the Woodpeckers, Piculets, and Wrynecks of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge 1995: p. 212
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. 62-63 and 211-212.
Web links
- Melanerpes rubricapillus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2009. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2009. Accessed on 7 April of 2010.
Other web links
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Melanerpes rubricapillus in the Internet Bird Collection