White woodpecker

White woodpecker
	White woodpecker
Systematics
Order :	Woodpecker birds (Piciformes)
Family :	Woodpeckers (Picidae)
Subfamily :	Real woodpeckers (Picinae)
Genre :	Melanerpes
Type :	White woodpecker
Scientific name
	Melanerpes candidus
	( Otto , 1796)

The White Woodpecker ( Melanerpes candidus ) is a species of bird from the family of woodpeckers (Picidae). This very small species of woodpecker inhabits large parts of South America and inhabits a wide range of dry, open forest communities. The food that is sought almost exclusively on trees consists of fruits and seeds, and white woodpeckers are probably the only woodpecker species to open bees and wasps' nests in order to capture the brood and honey. The white woodpecker is considered relatively rare and the distribution is rather irregular with large gaps. Due to the very large distribution area and the apparently increasing population, the species is classified by the IUCN as non-endangered ("least concern").

description

White woodpeckers are quite small woodpeckers with a relatively long, slightly chisel-shaped, pointed beak that is medium-wide at the base. The ridge of the beak is bent downwards. The body length is about 24 cm and the weight 98-136 g; they are about the size of a great spotted woodpecker , but much heavier. The species shows a clear sexual dimorphism in terms of coloration, the sexes do not otherwise differ.

The species has a special position within the woodpeckers in terms of coloration. The upper back, the upper wing coverts and the shoulder feathers are solid black with a slightly bluish sheen, the wings are brown-black. The control feathers are broadly white above and below at the base, otherwise brown-black with some white spots on the distal areas of the outer feathers. The lower back, the rump, the lower and upper tail covers and the entire underside of the torso are almost monochrome white, only the middle of the abdomen is yellow. The under wing coverts are black, the underside of the wings is gray-brown.

In the male, the head and neck are predominantly white. A narrow black eye stripe runs from the base of the beak backwards over the sides of the neck to the upper back, and a small area in the neck is yellow. Females lack the yellowing of the neck and the eye stripe is usually only very indistinct, so that the head is almost monochrome white. Young birds are more brownish black on top, the white plumage areas are tinged with reddish brown and the belly is more pale yellow.

The beak is black and lightened at the base, legs and toes are olive, gray-green or brownish. The iris is white, blue-white or yellow, and the animals also have a wide yellow eye ring. The intraspecies variability is very low and no subspecies are recognized.

Vocalizations

The high flight call, which is reminiscent of the calls of terns and sounds like "kirr-kirr-kirr" or "crii-crii-crii-criih" , is very striking . The most frequent call from a control room can be expressed as “ghirrih” or “kriir” . Whether white woodpeckers drum has not yet been described.

distribution and habitat

The white woodpecker inhabits large parts of central and eastern South America . The distribution area extends in an east-west direction from eastern Peru to western Brazil . In a north-south direction, the area comprises a narrow, coastal zone in Suriname and French Guiana and then extends in a wide zone from the lower reaches of the Amazon in Brazil to the east of Bolivia , to Paraguay , to the west of Uruguay and to central Argentina . The size of the total distribution area is estimated at around 4.8 million km². The species inhabits dry forests of all kinds, savannah and dry bushland, but also palm groves and orchards. The animals come from the lowlands up to (locally) at an altitude of 2200 m.

Way of life

The animals are usually observed in small groups. They also look for isolated trees or groups of trees and also cross longer stretches in the open landscape. Most of the food is read off or obtained by hoeing, and white woodpeckers occasionally hunt insects in flight. According to Winkler et al. The food that is sought almost exclusively on trees consists mainly of fruits and seeds, and the animals also eat insects. White woodpeckers are probably the only type of woodpecker to open bees and wasps' nests in order to capture the brood and honey. A study on the southern edge of the distribution area in Argentina could not, at least there, confirm a clear preference for vegetable food. Only insects were found in the stomachs of 9 specimens examined, 98.5% of which were hymenoptera (Hymenoptera). The main diet was made up of leaf cutter ants of the genus Acromyrmex (59.0%), indeterminate ants (21.0%) and the Polybia scutellaris belonging to the field wasps (17.5%).

The breeding season extends from September to November. The nest holes are built in trees, but apparently some rock holes are also used for breeding. The clutch comprises three to four eggs and is incubated by both parents. Further information on the apparently pronounced social behavior and breeding biology are not yet available.

Existence and endangerment

There is no information on the size of the world population. The white woodpecker is considered relatively rare and the distribution is rather irregular with large gaps. Due to the very large distribution area and the apparently increasing population, the species is classified by the IUCN as non-endangered ("least concern").

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Individual evidence

↑ The White Woodpecker at BirdLife International. Retrieved July 23, 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. 195

↑ TO Patterer, AH Beltzer and MA Rossetti: Diet of Melanerpes candidus white woodpecker (Aves: Picidae) in the Paraná river floodplain, Argentina. Revista FAVE - Ciencias Veterinarias 2 (2), 2003: pp. 132–139 (Spanish with English summary) Online, PDF ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2

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. 54-55 and 194-195.

Web links

Melanerpes candidus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2009. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed July 23 of 2010.