- Melanerpes aurifrons
Description
9 1/2" (24 cm). Barred with black and white above and buff below, like Red-bellied Woodpecker, but male has red restricted to cap; nape orange; forecrown yellow; female lacks red but has orange nape.
Voice: Loud churrrr. Call a burry chuck-chuck-chuck.
Identification
Photographed: Roma, Texas, U.S.A.
Habitat Open woods in dry country and river bottoms with trees.
Nesting 4 or 5 white eggs in holes in mesquite trees, poles, and posts.
Range Resident in southwestern Oklahoma and central Texas.
Discussion This familiar woodpecker is common in the parks and shade trees of Texas towns and cities. A southwestern species, it is a close relative of and resembles the Red-bellied Woodpecker found mainly in the Southeast. The species name aurifrons is Latin for "gold-fronted."
