- Grey-headed Woodpecker
-
Grey-headed Woodpecker Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Piciformes Family: Picidae Genus: Picus Species: P. canus Binomial name Picus canus
Gmelin, 1788The Grey-headed Woodpecker (Picus canus), also known as the Grey-faced Woodpecker, is a Eurasian member of the woodpecker family Piciformes.
Its plumage closely resembles its near relative the Green Woodpecker. It has green upperparts, pale grey underparts and a yellow rump. It has a grey head with black moustache, and the male has a red crown. It has a shorter neck, slimmer bill and slightly rounder head than the Green Woodpecker.
It is 25–28 cm long and weighs 130-180 grams.
Grey-headed woodpeckers live in leaf forests and mixed forests. They breed in May and lay five to ten eggs which are brought up by both parents. The young hatch after 15–17 days, and learn to fly in four weeks.
In summer, the grey-headed woodpecker eats maggots, beetle larvae and other insects. In winter it takes seeds, and can even come to garden feeding places, especially if fat is offered.
The Sibley-Monroe checklist has two birds called "Grey-headed Woodpecker", Dendropicos spodocephalus and Picus canus. For the former, see African Grey-headed Woodpecker.
References
- Gorman, Gerard (2004): Woodpeckers of Europe: A Study of the European Picidae. Bruce Coleman, UK. ISBN 1 872842 05 4.
- BirdLife International (2004). Picus canus. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
This woodpecker-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.