Photo: Steve Garvie from Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland / CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Rufous-winged Woodpecker
Piculus simplex
Rufous-winged Woodpecker (Piculus simplex) — Woodpeckers & Toucans of Central America & Caribbean.
Found across 2 guides in our atlas — open any for the full checklist, photos and what's around right now.
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker (Piculus simplex) is a member of the Picidae family found in Central America & Caribbean. Adults weigh 55 g. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List (opens in a new tab)Widespread and abundant — not currently at risk.
Where it fits
- Class Aves
- Order Piciformes
- Family Picidae Woodpeckers
- Genus Piculus
- Species simplex
Quick facts
- Weight
- 55 g
- Diet
- Invertebrate-eaters
- Family
- Picidae
- Order
- Piciformes
- Habitat
- Woodland
How to identify
Similar birds
Least Concern
Not Evaluated
Least Concern
Least Concern
Biology & behaviour
Diet
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.
Behaviour
A bird of dense forest, it spends much of its time perched in trees and shrubs.
Migration
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker (Piculus simplex) is a species of bird in the Picidae family, part of the order Piciformes. It is found across Central America & Caribbean. Its distribution covers MA Honduras to Panama.
It is a medium-sized bird. Adults weighs around 55 g, with a wing length of about 11.2 cm and a tail of around 6.1 cm.
The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern. That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.
The species has a mapped global range of roughly 93,000 km².
Songs & calls
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Rufous-winged Woodpecker?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is a medium-sized bird that weighs around 55 g.
Where does the Rufous-winged Woodpecker live?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is found across Central America & Caribbean with a range covering MA Honduras to Panama, where it favours woodland, forest and well-treed country.
What family does the Rufous-winged Woodpecker belong to?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker (Piculus simplex) belongs to the Picidae family, in the order Piciformes.
What does the Rufous-winged Woodpecker eat?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.
Does the Rufous-winged Woodpecker migrate?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.
Is the Rufous-winged Woodpecker endangered?
The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.
What sound does the Rufous-winged Woodpecker make?
1 real field recording of the Rufous-winged Woodpecker — including its call — can be played in the Songs & calls section on this page, credited to the recordist who captured it.
How large is the Rufous-winged Woodpecker's range?
The Rufous-winged Woodpecker has a mapped global range of about 93,000 km².
Conservation
Every bird benefits from bird-safe windows, native plants, and keeping cats indoors. Small changes at home add up to real protection.
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Guides for this bird
Best Suet Feeders for Woodpeckers
How to choose a suet feeder for woodpeckers — the styles compared, why a tail prop helps, and how to keep starlings off. A decision framework with the woodpecker species in the Birbs encyclopedia.
Meet the Picidae
A field guide to the Picidae family — 239 species in the Birbs encyclopedia, with the best-known members to start with.