Assistant Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.

Washington, D. C., March 22, 1939.

CONTENTS

Page
Introduction [VII]
Order Piciformes [1]
Family Picidae: American woodpeckers [1]
Campephilus principalis: Ivory-billed woodpecker [1]
Habits [1]
Distribution [12]
Dryobates villosus villosus: Eastern hairy woodpecker [13]
Habits [13]
Distribution [23]
Dryobates villosus septentrionalis: Northern hairy woodpecker [25]
Habits [25]
Dryobates villosus auduboni: Southern hairy woodpecker [27]
Habits [27]
Dryobates villosus harrisi: Harris’s woodpecker [29]
Habits [29]
Dryobates villosus hyloscopus: Cabanis’s woodpecker [33]
Habits [33]
Dryobates villosus monticola: Rocky Mountain hairy woodpecker [35]
Habits [35]
Dryobates villosus picoideus: Queen Charlotte woodpecker [37]
Habits [37]
Dryobates villosus terraenovae: Newfoundland woodpecker [38]
Habits [38]
Dryobates villosus icastus: Chihuahua woodpecker [39]
Habits [39]
Dryobates villosus sitkensis: Sitka hairy woodpecker [40]
Habits [40]
Dryobates villosus orius: Modoc woodpecker [41]
Habits [41]
Dryobates villosus scrippsae: Lower California hairy woodpecker [44]
Habits [44]
Dryobates villosus leucothorectis: White-breasted woodpecker [44]
Habits [44]
Dryobates pubescens pubescens: Southern downy woodpecker [45]
Habits [45]
Distribution [47]
Dryobates pubescens gairdneri: Gairdner’s woodpecker [49]
Habits [49]
Dryobates pubescens leucurus: Batchelder’s woodpecker [51]
Habits [51]
Dryobates pubescens medianus: Northern downy woodpecker [52]
Habits [52]
Dryobates pubescens nelsoni: Nelson’s downy woodpecker [68]
Habits [68]
Dryobates pubescens turati: Willow woodpecker [69]
Habits [69]
Dryobates borealis: Red-cockaded woodpecker [72]
Habits [72]
Distribution [79]
Dryobates scalaris symplectus: Texas woodpecker [79]
Habits [79]
Distribution [81]
Dryobates scalaris lucasanus: San Lucas woodpecker [82]
Habits [82]
Dryobates scalaris cactophilus: Cactus woodpecker [83]
Habits [83]
Dryobates scalaris eremicus: San Fernando woodpecker [86]
Habits [86]
Dryobates nuttalli: Nuttall’s woodpecker [87]
Habits [87]
Distribution [91]
Dryobates arizonae arizonae: Arizona woodpecker [91]
Habits [91]
Distribution [96]
Dryobates albolarvatus albolarvatus: Northern white-headed woodpecker [97]
Habits [97]
Distribution [104]
Dryobates albolarvatus gravirostris: Southern white-headed woodpecker [105]
Habits [105]
Picoïdes arcticus: Arctic three-toed woodpecker [106]
Habits [106]
Distribution [115]
Picoïdes tridactylus bacatus: American three-toed woodpecker [116]
Habits [116]
Distribution [121]
Picoïdes tridactylus fasciatus: Alaska three-toed woodpecker [122]
Habits [122]
Picoïdes tridactylus dorsalis: Alpine three-toed woodpecker [124]
Habits [124]
Sphyrapicus varius varius: Yellow-bellied sapsucker [126]
Habits [126]
Distribution [139]
Sphyrapicus varius nuchalis: Red-naped sapsucker [141]
Habits [141]
Sphyrapicus varius daggetti: Southern red-breasted sapsucker [146]
Habits [146]
Sphyrapicus varius ruber: Northern red-breasted sapsucker [151]
Habits [151]
Sphyrapicus thyroideus thyroideus: Williamson’s sapsucker [154]
Habits [154]
Distribution [160]
Sphyrapicus thyroideus nataliae: Natalie’s sapsucker [162]
Habits [162]
Ceophloeus pileatus pileatus: Southern pileated woodpecker [164]
Habits [164]
Distribution [170]
Ceophloeus pileatus abieticola: Northern pileated woodpecker [171]
Habits [171]
Ceophloeus pileatus floridanus: Florida pileated woodpecker [189]
Habits [189]
Ceophloeus pileatus picinus: Western pileated woodpecker [191]
Habits [191]
Melanerpes erythrocephalus: Red-headed woodpecker [195]
Habits [195]
Distribution [208]
Balanosphyra formicivora formicivora: Ant-eating woodpecker [211]
Habits [211]
Distribution [211]
Balanosphyra formicivora bairdi: California woodpecker [212]
Habits [212]
Balanosphyra formicivora angustifrons: Narrow-fronted woodpecker [222]
Habits [222]
Balanosphyra formicivora aculeata: Mearns’s woodpecker [223]
Habits [223]
Balanosphyra formicivora martirensis: San Pedro woodpecker [226]
Habits [226]
Asyndesmus lewis: Lewis’s woodpecker [226]
Habits [226]
Distribution [236]
Centurus carolinus: Red-bellied woodpecker [237]
Habits [237]
Distribution [244]
Centurus aurifrons: Golden-fronted woodpecker [245]
Habits [245]
Distribution [249]
Centurus uropygialis uropygialis: Gila woodpecker [250]
Habits [250]
Distribution [256]
Centurus uropygialis cardonensis: Cardon woodpecker [257]
Habits [257]
Centurus uropygialis brewsteri: Brewster’s woodpecker [258]
Habits [258]
Colaptes auratus auratus: Southern flicker [259]
Habits [259]
Distribution [261]
Colaptes auratus luteus: Northern flicker [264]
Habits [264]
Colaptes cafer collaris: Red-shafted flicker [287]
Habits [287]
Distribution [294]
Colaptes cafer cafer: Northwestern flicker [296]
Habits [296]
Colaptes cafer martirensis: San Pedro flicker [298]
Habits [298]
Colaptes chrysoides chrysoides: Cape gilded flicker [299]
Habits [299]
Distribution [300]
Colaptes chrysoides mearnsi: Mearns’s gilded flicker [301]
Habits [301]
Colaptes chrysoides brunnescens: San Fernando flicker [305]
Habits [305]
Colaptes cafer rufipileus: Guadalupe flicker [306]
Habits [306]
Literature cited [309]
Index [323]

INTRODUCTION

This is the twelfth in a series of bulletins of the United States National Museum on the life histories of North American birds. Previous numbers have been issued as follows:

The same general plan has been followed, as explained in previous bulletins, and the same sources of information have been utilized. The nomenclature of the 1931 check list of the American Ornithologists’ Union has been followed, but it has seemed best to continue in the same order of arrangement of families and species as given in the old check list (1910).

An attempt has been made to give as full a life history as possible of the best-known subspecies and to avoid duplication by writing briefly of the others and giving only the characters of the subspecies, its range, and any habits peculiar to it. In many cases certain habits, probably common to the species as a whole, have been recorded for only one subspecies; such habits are mentioned under the subspecies on which the observations were made. The distribution gives the range of the species as a whole, with only rough outlines of the ranges of the subspecies, which cannot be accurately defined in many cases.

The egg dates are the condensed results of a mass of records taken from the data in a large number of the best egg collections in the country, as well as from contributed field notes and from a few published sources. They indicate the dates on which eggs have been actually found in various parts of the country, showing the earliest and latest dates and the limits between which half the dates fall, the height of the season.