- Rufous Woodpecker
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Rufous Woodpecker 
In Kolkata (West Bengal, India) Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Piciformes Family: Picidae Genus: Micropternus Species: M. brachyurus Binomial name Micropternus brachyurus
(Vieillot, 1818)Synonyms Celeus brachyurus (Vieillot, 1818)
The Rufous Woodpecker, Micropternus brachyurus is a brown woodpecker found in South Asia. Its genus, Micropternus, is monotypic.
It builds its nest within the nest of acrobat ants (Crematogaster). This bird is not considered threatened by the IUCN[1].
Description and systematics
It is a medium-sized, rufous-coloured woodpecker with a short crest and a short, weak and slightly curved black bill. It has black vermiculations on its rufous body and a dark eye stripe. The upperparts are finely barred black. The male has small red patches at the eyes.
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In Kolkata (West Bengal, India)
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In Kolkata (West Bengal, India)
This singular species was formerly placed in the South American genus Celeus simply due to its somewhat similar appearance and for lack of a better alternative, but it differed from these species in many aspects. DNA sequence analyses have confirmed that the Rufous Woodpecker should be placed in the monotypic genus Micropternus. Its closest relatives seem to be the enigmatic woodpeckers of the genus Meiglyptes and possibly Hemicircus.[2]
Footnotes
References
- Benz, Brett W.; Robbins, Mark B. & Peterson, A. Townsend (2006): Evolutionary history of woodpeckers and allies (Aves: Picidae): Placing key taxa on the phylogenetic tree. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 40(2): 389–399. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.02.021 PDF fulltext
- BirdLife International (BLI) (2008). Celeus brachyurus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 23 May 2009.
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