Bird name:

Golden-fronted Woodpecker

Melanerpes aurifrons

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Woodpeckers (Picidae)

Code 4

GFWO

Code 6

MELAUR

ITIS

178194

Breeding Location:

Forest, Dense cactuses

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Common to fairly common

Egg Color:

White

Number of Eggs:

4 - 7

Incubation Days:

12 - 14

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Bark chips.

Migration:

Nonmigratory

RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS

General

Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Medium-sized woodpecker with black-and-white barred back and wings, white rump, yellow-orange nape, red cap, yellow patch at base of upper mandible, and buff-gray face and underparts. Female lacks red cap; juvenile has streaked breast and lacks red cap and yellow nape and bill patches.

Range and Habitat

Golden-fronted Woodpecke: Resident in southwestern Oklahoma and central Texas. Frequents open woods in dry country and river bottoms with trees.

Breeding and Nesting

Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Four to seven white eggs are laid in a nest made of bark chips, and built from 3 to 25 feet above the ground in a cavity in a dead or living tree, utility pole, fence post, or man-made structure. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Eats insects, spiders, wild berries, fruits, nuts, acorns, and seeds. Forages low on trees and on the ground.

Readily Eats

Suet, Sunflower Seed, Nuts, Sugar Water, Fruit

Vocalization

Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Song is a noisy trill "churrrrrrr-churrrrrrrr", flicker-like "kek-kek-kek-kek-kek-kek" or "check, check."

Similar Species

Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Red-bellied Woodpecker is similar, but male has red restricted to cap, orange nape, and yellow forecrown; female lacks red but has orange nape.

Percevia^® Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The Percevia field guides, database and search protocol patent pending.

The best bird guide and bird watching search engine to identify birds!

Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Cap

The area on top of the head of the bird.

Face

The front part of the head consisting of the bill, eyes, cheeks and chin.

Nape

Also called the hindneck or collar, it is the back of the neck where the head joins the body.

Rump

The area between the uppertail coverts and the back of the bird.

Upper mandible

The upper part of the bill.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America