Gabon Woodpecker

About the Gabon Woodpecker

The Gabon woodpecker (Dendropicos gabonensis) is a species of small woodpecker in the family Picidae which occurs in western central Africa. The Gabon woodpecker is a small woodpecker with a short bill which is quite broad at the base. It has plain green upperparts, a plain dark tail and heavily spotted underparts with a yellowish background colour. The crown is brownish but the males have a red hindcrown and nape, as well as an indistinct, narrow moustachial. The adult females lack red on the head, however both sexes of juveniles have red on the centre of the crown. The subspecies D.g. reichenowihas a more distinct moustachial stripe, broader underpart streaking and a lesser extent of red on the adult male's head than the nominate subspecies. They are 16–17 cm in length and weigh 24–30 g.

There are two currently recognised subspecies, they and their distribution are: Dendropicos gabonensis reichenowi Sjöstedt, 1893: Southern Nigeria to south-western Cameroon. Dendropicos gabonensis gabonensis (J. P. Verreaux & J. B. É. Verreaux, 1851): Southern Cameroon. except the south-west, and south-western Central African Republic... Wikipedia →