Piciformes / Picidae / Micropternus
Rufous Woodpecker
Micropternus brachyurus · 栗啄木鸟
Introduction
Medium-sized brown woodpecker native to South and Southeast Asia. Taxonomically placed in the monotypic genus Micropternus, sister to Meiglyptes. Inhabits scrub, evergreen, and deciduous forests. Distinctive for foraging on ants and termites and building nests within carton nests of arboreal Crematogaster ants. Not considered threatened on the IUCN Red List.
Description
Approximately 25 cm long. Overall dark brown with dark bands on wing and tail feathers creating a black-barred appearance. Head appears paler; underparts are darker. Bill is short, black, slightly curved, and narrow at the nostrils. Tail is short and rufous with narrow black bars, though subspecies badiosus has a dark tail with narrow rufous bars. Males have red-tipped feathers under eyes, between eye and ear coverts, and on the malar region, sometimes forming a patch. Females and young lack red feather tips. A weak, erectile crest is present. Juveniles may have streaked throats.
Identification
Field identification relies on overall dark brown, barred plumage and short bill. Birds often appear soiled and smell of ant secretions due to nesting habits. Vocalizations include a sharp nasal three-note keenk-keenk-keenk, a long wicka, and wick-wick series. Drumming starts rapidly and slows in tempo.
Distribution & Habitat
Native to South and Southeast Asia, including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, China (southeast and Hainan), Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and Natuna Islands. Ten recognized subspecies exhibit regional variations in plumage and size. Habitat includes plains and lower hills mostly below 3000 m, in scrub, evergreen, and deciduous forests. Persists in oil palm plantations in Malaysia.
Behavior & Ecology
Forages in pairs on ant and termite nests on trees, logs, dung heaps, and hills. Feeds on Crematogaster and Oecophylla ants, nectar from Bombax and Erythrina flowers, and sap from banana fronds. Breeding season occurs during the pre-Monsoon dry period (February to June). Nests are excavated within carton nests of acrobat ants (Crematogaster) by both sexes. Parents become covered in sticky, smelly fluid with dead ants adhering to feathers. Clutch size is two white, matt, thin-shelled, translucent eggs. Incubation lasts 12 to 14 days. Both parents feed young. Moult occurs mainly from September to November. Displays involve head swaying with bill held high and tail splayed.
Conservation
Not considered threatened on the IUCN Red List.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Piciformes
- Family
- Picidae
- Genus
- Micropternus
Vocalizations
Subspecies (10)
-
Micropternus brachyurus annamensis
Laos, Cambodia and southern Vietnam
Data Sources
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.
