- Melanerpes chrysogenys
Identification
Black-and-white barred back, rump, with mostly pale grey underparts with yellow-tinged belly. It has a small black eye patch, a faint yellowish wash on ear patch, a red crown, and yellow forehead and nape.
The female is similar, but the crown is pale gray and black, not red.
Distribution
North America: found in Mexico, in the western, and south-western coastal strip, and the mountains of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- M. c. chrysogenys:
- Coastal lowlands of north-western Mexico (southern Sinaloa to Nayarit)
- M. c. flavinuchus:
- Western Mexico (Jalisco to se Puebla and e Oaxaca)
Habitat
Deciduous forests, gallery forests, tropical lowland evergreen forest, second-growth forests, woodlands, city edges and gardens.
Behaviour
Diet
They have a varied diet, consisting of insects, fruit and seeds.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved April 2014)
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Golden-cheeked Woodpecker. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 25 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Golden-cheeked_Woodpecker
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
