Fire-bellied Woodpecker

Chloropicus pyrrhogaster

Woodpeckers · Piciformes · Rare

The Fire-bellied Woodpecker (Chloropicus pyrrhogaster) is a rare woodpecker found in 8 countries. The fire-bellied woodpecker is a species of bird in the family Picidae.

Least ConcernRare

About the Fire-bellied Woodpecker

The fire-bellied woodpecker is a species of bird in the family Picidae. It is found in Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo and western Cameroon. A common species, the IUCN has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern". Some taxonomic authorities place this species in Dendropicos.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

How to identify it

The upper parts of the fire-bellied woodpecker are olive or bronze with slight barring. The wings are brown with some light barring and the upper-tail blackish. The rump and upper tail coverts are crimson. The head and throat are white, boldly marked with a blackish malar streak that extends onto the breast, and a post-ocular streak extending onto the ear-coverts. The breast is cream with dark chevrons on the flanks, the central region and belly being scarlet as far as the vent. The long, sharp beak is grey as are the legs.

Where it lives

When to see it

Best months: January, February, March, April, October, November, December, with peak activity in November. It is a variable species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

How do you identify a Fire-bellied Woodpecker?
The upper parts of the fire-bellied woodpecker are olive or bronze with slight barring. Full identification notes are on this page.
Where can you see a Fire-bellied Woodpecker?
The Fire-bellied Woodpecker occurs in 8 countries, including Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Benin.
What birds look similar to a Fire-bellied Woodpecker?
The Fire-bellied Woodpecker is most easily confused with the Yellow-crested Woodpecker and the Bearded Woodpecker.
Is the Fire-bellied Woodpecker endangered?
The Fire-bellied Woodpecker is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the Fire-bellied Woodpecker for real

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