Sapsucker

Sapsucker
Sapsuckers
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Piciformes
Family: Picidae
Subfamily: Picinae
Tribe: Dendropicini
Genus: Sphyrapicus
Baird, 1858
Species

Sphyrapicus varius
Sphyrapicus nuchalis
Sphyrapicus ruber
Sphyrapicus thyroideus

The Sapsuckers form the genus Sphyrapicus within the woodpecker family Picidae. All are found in North America.

As their name implies, sapsuckers feed primarily on the sap of trees, moving among different tree and shrub species on a seasonal basis. Insects, especially those attracted to the sweet sap exuding from sap holes, are often captured and fed to the young during the breeding season. The most easily recognized sap holes are found in birch trees during the breeding season.

The members of this genus are slender birds with stiff tails and relatively long wings. Their typical pattern in flight is undulating, alternating between quick bursts of wing beats and short dips with wings tucked against the body.

Because sapsuckers attack living trees, they are often considered a pest species.[1]

  • Holes drilled by Red-naped Sapsucker in Platanus wrightii in Arizona, USA

Species currently recognised include

Footnotes

  1. ^ TATE, J. 1973. Methods and annual sequence of foraging by the sapsucker. Auk 90:840-856.

External links


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • sapsucker — ☆ sapsucker [sap′suk΄ər ] n. any of a genus (Sphyrapicus) of American woodpeckers that often drill holes in trees for the sap and the insects the sap attracts …   English World dictionary

  • sapsucker — /sap suk euhr/, n. any of several American woodpeckers of the genus Sphyrapicus that drill holes in maple, apple, hemlock, etc., drinking the sap and eating the insects that gather there. Cf. yellow bellied sapsucker. [1795 1805, Amer.; SAP1 +… …   Universalium

  • sapsucker — noun small American woodpecker that feeds on sap from e.g. apple and maple trees • Hypernyms: ↑woodpecker, ↑peckerwood, ↑pecker • Hyponyms: ↑yellow bellied sapsucker, ↑Sphyrapicus varius, ↑red breasted sapsucker, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • sapsucker — sulčiai statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas atitikmenys: lot. Sphyrapicus angl. sapsucker vok. Saftlecker, m rus. дятел сосун, m ryšiai: platesnis terminas – tamsianugariai geniai siauresnis terminas – geltonpilvis sulčius siauresnis terminas… …   Paukščių pavadinimų žodynas

  • sapsucker — noun Date: 1805 any of a genus (Sphyrapicus) of North American woodpeckers that drill holes in trees in order to obtain sap and insects for food …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • sapsucker — noun /ˈsæpˌsʌkər/ a) a type of woodpecker of the eastern United States (of the genus Sphyrapicus) that feeds mainly on the sap of trees b) Any woodpecker that punctures the bark of trees and feeds upon the sap …   Wiktionary

  • sapsucker — n. variety of North American woodpecker that creates holes in trees in order to feed on sap and insects (Zoology) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • sapsucker — noun an American woodpecker that pecks rows of small holes in trees and visits them for sap and insects. [Sphyrapicus: four species.] …   English new terms dictionary

  • sapsucker — sap•suck•er [[t]ˈsæpˌsʌk ər[/t]] n. orn any of several North American woodpeckers of the genus Sphyrapicus that drill holes in trees for sap and to catch insects attracted by sap • Etymology: 1795–1805, amer …   From formal English to slang

  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker — Taxobox name = Yellow bellied Sapsucker status = LC status system = iucn3.1 status ref = IUCN2007|assessors=BirdLife International|year=2004|id=47306|title=Sphyrapicus varius|downloaded=31 July 2007 Database entry includes justification for why… …   Wikipedia

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