The Gabon woodpecker (''Dendropicos gabonensis'') is a species of small woodpecker in the family

Picidae Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar and the extreme polar regions. ...

which occurs in western central Africa.

Description

The Gabon woodpecker is a small woodpecker with a short bill which is quite broad at the base. It has plain green upperparts, a plain dark tail and heavily spotted underparts with a yellowish background colour. The crown is brownish but the males have a red hindcrown and nape, as well as an indistinct, narrow moustachial. The adult females lack red on the head, however both sexes of juveniles have red on the centre of the crown. The

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

''D.g. reichenowi''has a more distinct moustachial stripe, broader underpart streaking and a lesser extent of red on the adult male's head than the nominate subspecies. They are 16–17 cm in length and weigh 24–30 g. Dendropicos gabonensis Keulemans

Distribution, subspecies and taxonomy

There are two currently recognised subspecies, they and their distribution are: *''Dendropicos gabonensis reichenowi'' Sjöstedt, 1893: Southern Nigeria to south-western Cameroon. *''Dendropicos gabonensis gabonensis'' (J. P. Verreaux & J. B. É. Verreaux, 1851): Southern Cameroon. except the south-west, and south-western

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

south to southern

Republic of Congo The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo), is a country located on the western coast of Central ...

, and east across northern and central

Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

, east to the western slopes of the

Ruwenzori Mountains The Rwenzori (also known as the Ruwenzori, Rwenzururu or Rwenjura) are a mountain range, range of mountains in eastern equatorial Africa, located on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The highest peak of the Ruw ...

and south to western Kasai to extreme western Uganda; reports from Cabinda the

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

are considered dubious. The melancholy woodpecker ''Dendropicos lugubris'' which breeds from

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

east to

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, is sometimes considered a subspecies of Gabon woodpecker and ''D.g. reichenowi'' is intermediate in appearance between ''lugubris'' and ''gabonensis''.

Habitat

The Gabon woodpecker occurs in forest edge, tall secondary growth and the wooded edges of farmland, normally lower than 1400m above sea level. It avoids dense forest and savannas.

Habits

The Gabon woodpecker breeds in September and October in the west and June in Uganda. It forages by probing into and gleaning from bark, as well as pecking at and prising off pieces of bark and soft wood.

References

External links

Recordings from Xeno-Canto
{{Taxonbar, from=Q890892 Gabon woodpecker Birds of Central Africa Gabon woodpecker Taxonomy articles created by Polbot