Yellow-browed Woodpecker

Overview

The yellow-browed woodpecker, also known as the white-browed woodpecker, is a Near Threatened species of bird in the woodpecker family Picidae. It is a year-round resident found in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

Identification

• Males have red plumage from the forehead to the nape with a narrow yellowish white supercilium, while females have an olive forehead and crown.
• Adults possess olive green upperparts, dark brown flight feathers with greenish edges, and a blackish tail.
• Underparts are whitish with wide dark olive bars; the bill is medium-length, blackish gray, and the legs are greenish gray.
• Song consists of a slow or hurried series of 7-15 high 'wuh' notes, accompanied by drumming that produces rapid, regular rolls.

Habitat

This species inhabits the interior and edges of humid mature montane forest, dense secondary forest, and humid lowland forest. Its range extends from Brazil's São Paulo state south through eastern Paraguay and northern Uruguay into northeastern Argentina, typically at elevations between 750 and 2,000 m in Brazil.

Diet

The bird forages mostly in the middle level of the forest, either alone or in pairs, using gleaning and pecking techniques. While its diet has not been studied in detail, it is known to include ants and their eggs.

Did you know?

Despite its somewhat restricted range and being described as shy, the species' breeding season is not well defined but appears to occur from August to November, with nests excavated high in trees.