- Veniliornis passerinus
Identification
This bird is one of the smallest woodpeckers at 14–15 cm (5½-6 in).
Male
- Greyish forehead
- Red crown to nape
- Brownish-olive head
Distribution
South America: found in Colombia, Venezuela, The Guianas, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay and northeast Argentina.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 9 subspecies[1]:
- V. p. fidelis: East Colombia to western Venezuela
- V. p. modestus: North East Venezuela
- V. p. passerinus: The Guianas and north-eastern Brazil
- V. p. diversus: North Brazil
- V. p. agilis: East Ecuador to northern Bolivia and western Brazil
- V. p. olivinus: South Brazil to Paraguay, Bolivia and northern Argentina
- V. p. taenionotus: East Brazil
- V. p. tapajozensis: Central Brazil
- V. p. insignis: West-central Brazil
Habitat
Tropical forest including rainforest, second growth, riparian forest etc, Mostly below 800 m asl but higher in Colombia and not as high in the south end of its range. They appear to show a preference for forest edges and clearings and second growth.
Behaviour
Diet
Their insectivorous diet consists of ants, termites, beetles and larvae etc. They forage alone, in pairs and groups.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2017)
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Little Woodpecker. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Little_Woodpecker
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
