Featured species: Cinnamon Woodpecker (Celeus loricatus)

In several visits to the Pipeline Road and San Francisco Reserve we have observed Cinnamon Woodpeckers (Celeus loricatus) but we have never been so close as this time. A couple (male & female) were spotted by us at middle level of the forest on a tree, drilling a hole. In the beginning we thought they were trying to build a nest, but then we realised they were feeding. We are still not sure if they were eating any sort of insect or sucking sap, which clearly was overflowing from the hole in the trunk.

Of course, this meant excellent opportunities for a photo session, specially when the couple began taking turns at the natural feeder. The only challenge was to get a frozen sharp picture between the pecking action.

Cinnamon Woodpecker (Celeus loricatus) - male

Cinnamon Woodpecker (Celeus loricatus) - female

The Cinnamon Woodpecker ranges from Nicaragua south along the Caribbean slope of Costa Rica and Panama to the Pacific slope of Colombia and northwestern Ecuador. In Panama it's fairly common on entire Caribbean slope, and on the Pacific slope from the Canal Area eastward to Colombia. It's usually found in upper levels of forest, and prefers the canopy of tall forest. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests but also ranges higher in elevation into the foothills. Like other Celeus woodpeckers, it is known to forage on ants and termites.

Cinnamon Woodpecker (Celeus loricatus) - females

This species is brightly plumaged cinnamon rufous above, with fine black bars, and white below with sharp black chevrons.

Cinnamon Woodpecker (Celeus loricatus) - male

Males differ by having a red moustache. In Central America (and western Caribbean slope of Panama), overlaps with the Chestnut-colored Woodpecker (Celeus castaneus), which has a paler rufous crest, and dark chesnut underparts with black chevrons.

As usual, this day we also observed and photographed other species which we has already shown before on this blog: