Blond-crested Woodpecker Celeus flavescens

Brazilian name:
pica-pau-de-cabeça-amarela
Female Blond-crested Woodpecker, Linhares, Espírito Santo, Brazil, March 2004 - click for larger image Brazil

The Blond-crested Woodpecker is distributed throughout eastern Brazil from the south bank of the Amazon to Rio Grande do Sul and into adjacent Paraguay and Argentina. It is found in a variety of habitats from humid forest to savannah and scrub.

The most striking feature is the blond crest which contrasts with the rest of the upperparts which are black with narrow white or buff stripes. The male has a red malar and cheek band, as seen in photos 2 and 3, while the female, seen in photo 1, has black streaks in their place. Photo 4 shows an immature male.

Male Blond-crested Woodpecker, Parque do Zizo, São Paulo, Brazil, November 2006 - click for larger image This describes and illustrates the nominate sub-species found from south Bahia southwards. The most northerly race, C. f. ochraceous, (shown here in photo 5) has noticeably more cinnamon-buff on the upperparts while the race in west Bahia and Goiás, C. f. intercedens, is intermediate between these two.

It feeds mainly on ants and termites although fruit is also eaten regularly. It excavates its nest in ant nests up trees.

Male Blond-crested Woodpecker, Parque do Zizo, São Paulo, Brazil, November 2006 - click for larger image There are recordings on xeno-canto, a distribution map from NatureServe and additional information available via Avibase. There is a page with excellent photos on Wikiaves.
Immature Male Blond-crested Woodpecker, Parque do Zizo, São Paulo, Brazil, November 2006 - click for larger image
Male Blond-crested Woodpecker, Serra de Baturité, Ceará, Brazil, October 2008 - click for larger image
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