Bay Woodpecker

The bay woodpecker is a mid-size bird with a body length of 26.5–30 cm (10.4–11.8 in). The average adult bay woodpecker has a weight of 126–170 g (4.4–6.0 oz). Male bay woodpeckers can be distinguished by a brown crown on their heads, a short crest and nape with streaking, and a pale brown forehead. Female bay woodpeckers have a shorter bill than the males, as well as a pale head without any red on the neck. Bay woodpeckers are members of the Picidae bird family which also includes piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers.

Bay woodpeckers typically live in evergreen and mixed deciduous forests. They are found in heavily wooded ravines with dense growth. Bay woodpeckers are found in a variety of altitudes, ranging from as low as 50 m, and as high as 2750 m. Bay woodpeckers are most commonly found in the following South Asian countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The bay woodpecker's diet consists of various insects such as ants, termites and wood-boring beetles, and they will also consume berries occasionally. They do most of their foraging 3–4 m below the surface level, on trunks, rotting snags, logs, and on saplings, vines and bamboo. They do not forage near other bay woodpeckers, but they maintain loose contact with their partners.