Bird Guide

Golden-cheeked Woodpecker vs Puerto Rican Woodpecker

Golden-cheeked Woodpecker (Melanerpes chrysogenys)

Golden-cheeked Woodpecker

Melanerpes chrysogenys

Medium68 gWoodland

The golden-cheeked woodpecker is about 19 to 22 cm (7.5 to 8.7 in) long and weighs 55 to 88 g (1.9 to 3.1 oz). The sexes' plumage is alike except for their head pattern. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a whitish forehead, a red crown, and a yellow-gold nape and hindneck. Adult females have the same whitish forehead but a grayish-buff crown and an orange-red nape. In both sexes a wide black area surrounds the eye. Their upperparts are barred black and white; the black is widest on the rump and uppertail coverts. Their flight feathers are black with white bars throughout. Voice: The golden-cheeked woodpecker makes a variety of vocalizations including a "nasal 'ki-di-dik'", a "loud, nasal 'cheek-oo, cheek-oo, cheek-oo, keh-i-heh-ek'" and a "softer 'keh-i-heh' or 'kuh-uh-uh'."

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Javier Hernandez · CC BY 4.0
Puerto Rican Woodpecker (Melanerpes portoricensis)

Puerto Rican Woodpecker

Melanerpes portoricensis

Small60 gForest

The Puerto Rican woodpecker has a black body and a bright red throat and breast. It has a white patch that runs across the head from eye to eye. Its flanks and lower body have a light tangerine coloration. As with the majority of birds sexual dimorphism is present in this species. The males' throat and breast are more brightly colored than the females' with females tending to be all-around duller in coloration. There is also a substantial (~18%) difference in bill length between sexes. Also males are slightly bigger than females. Its average weight is 56.0 grams.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Ryan Douglas · CC BY 3.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Golden-cheeked Woodpecker and Puerto Rican Woodpecker.