The ringed woodpecker is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Region
Amazon Basin and northern South America
Typical Environment
Occurs widely across lowland tropical forests from the Guianas and Venezuela through the Amazon of Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and into northern Bolivia. It favors mature terra firme forest but also uses várzea, swamp forests, and tall secondary growth. Most records are from the forest interior and edges with large trees. It is typically a canopy and subcanopy forager, descending to mid-levels where suitable trunks and limbs are available.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1200 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The ringed woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker of humid tropical forests and is often heard before it is seen, thanks to its ringing calls and steady drumming. Its name refers to the dark collar or 'ring' on its neck. Like other woodpeckers, it excavates nest cavities in dead or decaying wood and helps control populations of wood-boring insects.
Temperament
shy and elusive
Flight Pattern
undulating flight with short rapid wingbeats and brief glides
Social Behavior
Usually seen singly or in pairs, sometimes with a dependent juvenile. It nests in tree cavities that both sexes excavate, and pairs are likely monogamous during the breeding season. Occasionally joins mixed-species flocks in the canopy while foraging.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives loud, ringing, nasal calls that carry far through the canopy. Drumming is measured and resonant rather than rapid, typically a short roll repeated at intervals.
Plumage
Rich rufous-chestnut overall with a distinct dark collar around the neck, barred black-and-buff on the back and wings, and a pointed crest. Tail is mostly dark with strong, stiff feathers used for bracing on trunks.
Diet
Feeds mainly on ants, termites, and wood-boring beetle larvae extracted from decaying wood and under bark. It probes, pecks, and chips at trunks and larger branches, and will pry off bark to reach insect galleries. It occasionally takes fruits and berries, especially from palms, supplementing its insect diet.
Preferred Environment
Forages in the subcanopy and canopy of mature humid forest, along forest edges, and in tall secondary growth. Often works on dead snags and large limbs where insect prey is concentrated.
