Alternative names: Red-throated Wryneck; Rufous-breasted Wryneck; African Wryneck
- Jynx ruficollis
Identification
19cm. A small, unusual woodpecker.
- Mottled grey and brown above
- Rufous throat and upper breast, extend of rufous variable
- Rest of underparts whitish with dark shaft streaks
- Whitish malar are with brown vermiculation
- Short pointed bill
Sexes similar.
Similar species
Eurasian Wryneck lacks the rufous throat and has more barred (rather than streaked) underparts.
Distribution
Patchily distributed in Sub Saharan Africa.
Locally common but often irregular occurence.
Taxonomy
Jynx ruficollis has three subspecies:
- J. r. ruficollis
- J. r. pulchricollis
- J. r. aequatorialis
- Highlands of Ethiopia
Habitat
Wooded grassland, savanna, woodland, forest edge, timber plantations and gardens.
Occurs from 600m up to 3000m.
Behaviour
Feeds mainly on ants and their pupae and eggs. Takes also other insects. Forages on tree barks and on the ground. Breeding season differs through range, often breeds twice a year. The nest is placed in an old barbet hole, a natural cavity or sometimes in a nestbox or another artifical cavity. Lays 3 to 4 eggs. A resident in parts of its range, nomadic in others. Movements are poorly understood.
References
- Clements, JF. 2011. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to August 2011. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and J Sargatal, eds. 2002. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 7: Jacamars to Woodpeckers. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334375
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Rufous-necked Wryneck. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 2 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Rufous-necked_Wryneck
