About Woodpeckers
- There are 27 genera of woodpeckers in the world. Each one of these has multiple species of woodpeckers, making the breed varied and elaborate. These genera are divided among five tribes that collect species of woodpeckers that are similar amongst each other. These tribes are known as Dendropicini, incertae sedis, Malarpicini, Megapicini and Picini. Each of them are home to woodpeckers with certain traits, whether they are from a certain region, sport a particular series of colorings or markings, or have a unique way of foraging for food.
- The earliest forms of modern woodpeckers are theorized to have been around almost 50 million years ago in parts of Europe and North, Central and South America. Over the course of time they evolved little, up until about 10 to 15 million years ago, when the woodpecker subfamilies began to form. Many types of woodpeckers evolved into smaller-framed birds, as the larger woodpeckers started becoming extinct. Most recently, the ivory-billed woodpecker and the imperial woodpecker are thought to have become extinct as well.
- Woodpeckers are found throughout most of the world, and in every continent except for Antarctica and Australia. They are also absent from Madagascar and are not found on oceanic islands. Larger islands may house woodpeckers, but if that is the case they will be found far from the coast. Wherever woodpeckers happen to live, they always inhabit wooded areas because of their arboreal nature. Certain species, though rarer, do inhabit grassland, bamboo forests, and rain forests. One species, the ground woodpecker, has evolved to live in rocks and hills in South Africa.
- Woodpeckers come in a wide range of sizes depending on the species and the sex of the bird. The smallest woodpecker is known as the Bar-breasted Piculet, which averages just over 3 inches in length. The two largest woodpeckers, the Imperial and the Ivory-billed (23 and 20 inches average, respectfully) are thought to be extinct. But, this is not proven. If the birds do no longer exist, then the Great Slaty Woodpecker will be the largest, averaging just under 20 inches in length. Depending on the species of the woodpecker, either the female or male will be larger, though there are no species were both sexes are the same size.
- One of the most important features of a woodpecker, that sets it apart from other birds, is the beak or bill. It is used for hammering or drilling into wood, so the beak is usually sharper and stronger than typical bird beaks. When woodpeckers make a whole in a piece of wood with their beak, they use a long, sticky and bristled tongue that is designed for grabbing insects deep in the whole. Because hammering away at wood is a strenuous job, woodpeckers have also evolved a smaller brain that is set far from the skull in order to prevent it from being damaged.