OBSERVATIONS OF WINTER INTERACTIONS BETWEEN A RED-HEADED WOODPECKER (MELANERPES ERYTHROCEPHALUS) AND GOLDEN-FRONTED WOODPECKERS (M. AURIFRONS)

摘要

Red-headed Woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) are resident over much of the eastern United States where they are sympatric with Red-bellied Woodpeckers, M. carolinus (A.O.U. 1983). Numerous authors have addressed ecological relationships and interactions between these congeners during both the breeding and winter seasons (e.g., Kilham 1958; Reller 1972; Jackson 1976; Moskovits 1978; Nichols & Jackson 1987). Migratory populations of Red-headed Woodpeckers often winter in portions of west-central Texas where they are found sympatrically with Golden-fronted Woodpeckers, M. aurifrons (cf. Texas Ornithological Society 1995). In Tom Green County, Texas, Red-headed Woodpeckers are a rare to uncommon winter resident (Maxwell 1979; Texas Ornithological Society 1995). Despite this seasonal sympatry, there are no published accounts of interactions between these species. This report describes observations of winter territorial behavior by a single Red-headed Woodpecker towards Golden-fronted Woodpeckers.