Bird Guide

Arizona Woodpecker vs Smoky-brown Woodpecker

Arizona Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus arizonae)

Arizona Woodpecker

Leuconotopicus arizonae

Small41 gForest

Arizona woodpeckers are nearly identical to Strickland's woodpeckers, growing to be about 7 to 8 inches (18 to 20 cm) in length. Their plumage is mainly brown and white in coloration, brown on top with a dark rump with white underparts speckled with brown spots. Arizona woodpeckers usually have white bars on their wings, and have two white stripes across their face which join with another white bar on their neck. Male Arizona woodpeckers also have a red patch on the nape of their head which is lacking on females.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K · CC BY 2.0
Smoky-brown Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus fumigatus)

Smoky-brown Woodpecker

Leuconotopicus fumigatus

Small36 gForest

The smoky-brown woodpecker is about 18 cm (7.1 in) long and weighs 31 to 50 g (1.1 to 1.8 oz). Males and females have the same plumage except on their heads. Males are red from forehead to nape with dark feather bases showing through. The female's forehead to nape is dark brown with an olive tinge and occasionally some white speckles. Adults of both sexes of the nominate subspecies fumigatus have a mostly olive-brown face with whitish lores, a thin white supercilium, and a black "moustache" with a thin white line above it.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Smoky-brown Woodpecker
Recorded by Niels Krabbe · Call, tapping · Napo: Napo Galeras, Ecuador · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom · CC BY 2.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Arizona Woodpecker and Smoky-brown Woodpecker.