Rufous Woodpecker
    Image: Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0

    Rufous Woodpecker

    Micropternus brachyurus

    Iconic Birds
    Least Concern

    The rufous woodpecker is a medium-sized brown woodpecker native to South and Southeast Asia. It is short-billed, foraging in pairs on small insects, particularly ants and termites, in scrub, evergreen, and deciduous forests and is noted for building its nest within the carton nests of arboreal ants in the genus Crematogaster. It was for sometime placed in the otherwise Neotropical genus Celeus but this has been shown to be a case of evolutionary convergence and molecular phylogenetic studies support its placement in the monotypic genus Micropternus.

    Description adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Where to Find

    Top parks for Rufous Woodpecker. Sightings recorded in 181 safari areas total.

    ● Common (500+ sightings)● Occasional (50-499)● Rare (<50)
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