Rufous Piculet

Overview

The rufous piculet, Sasia abnormis, is a species of bird in the family Picidae found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand. It is distinguished as one of the world's smallest woodpeckers and the smallest outside the Americas, measuring only 8 to 10 cm in length.

Identification

• Plumage: Upper parts are generally green with a bronze tint, while underparts are rufous, orange, or cinnamon; males have a yellow or golden forehead patch, whereas females have a bronze patch.
• Size and Tail: A very small bird with short wings and an almost non-existent tail, featuring blackish upper tail feathers edged with olive.
• Bill and Legs: The upper mandible is blackish and the lower mandible yellowish; legs and feet are yellowish or orange, and the bird possesses only three toes on each foot rather than the standard four.
• Head Markings: Iris is reddish with a pinkish or purplish ring of bare skin around the eye.

Habitat

Native to tropical southeastern Asia, the rufous piculet resides in dense humid secondary forests characterized by tangled undergrowth, vines, creepers, bamboos, and rotting trees, often near streams. Its range extends from southern Myanmar through Thailand and the Malay Peninsula to the Greater Sunda Islands and Borneo, typically at lowlands and hills up to 1,370 m in elevation.

Diet

The diet consists of ants, their larvae, termites, small beetles, spiders, and other small invertebrates. Foraging occurs singly or in small groups in the lowest storeys of the forest, probing into holes and pulling out insects with its long tongue, sometimes moving crosswise up trunks by making little flights to turn around.

Did you know?

Unlike most members of the woodpecker family, the rufous piculet has only three toes on each foot instead of the normal four.