The Himalayan woodpecker (''Dendrocopos himalayensis'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family

Picidae Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. M ...

. It is found in the northern regions of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

, primarily the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

and some adjoining areas, and ranges across

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are boreal

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s and temperate forests. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed its conservation status as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

Description

A medium-sized, pied woodpecker reaching a length of about . Glossy black above with broad white patches from shoulder to lower back, limited white barring on flight feathers and clean white tail edgings. Underparts and head white or plain pale buff with black Y-shaped mark on neck and cheeks. The crown is red in males and black in females. Black marks under eyes are unique and distinguish it from other species. Vent and under-tail coverts red or pink. Iris chestnut, beak blackish and legs grey. The juvenile is duller, greyish-black above, and with vent and under-tail areas less vivid and crown greyish with some red (in both sexes).

Ecology

The Himalayan woodpecker is found at altitudes between . Its habitat is either wet or dry upland forest with either deciduous or coniferous trees, and often with

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

s. It forages individually, usually on trunks and large branches but sometimes on the ground. Its diet is varied, with insects, fruits, seeds and

sap Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a separa ...

. It sometimes hammers fir cones on stones to extract the seeds.

Status

The Himalayan woodpecker has a wide range and is generally a common or fairly common bird. No particular threats have been recognized and the population trend is thought to be steady. The

has assessed its conservation status as being of "

Gallery

File:Himalayan Woodpecker (Male) I IMG 7381.jpg, left, Male at Bhandakthaatch (8,500 ft.) in Kullu - Manali District of Himachal Pradesh, India File:Himalayan Woodpecker- Pair at nest I3 IMG 3932.jpg, Pair at nest in Kullu - Manali District of Himachal Pradesh, India File:Himalayan Woodpecker (Male) I2 IMG 3947.jpg, Male carrying food in Kullu - Manali District of Himachal Pradesh, India File:Himalayan Woodpecker (female) I IMG 6731.jpg, Female at ground at Guna Pani (8,500 ft.) in Kullu - Manali District of Himachal Pradesh, India

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1269250

Himalayan woodpecker The Himalayan woodpecker (''Dendrocopos himalayensis'') is a species of bird in the family Picidae. It is found in the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, primarily the Himalayas and some adjoining areas, and ranges across Afghanistan, I ...

Birds of Afghanistan Birds of the Himalayas Birds of Nepal Birds of Pakistan

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot