About Leuconotopicus stricklandi (Malherbe, 1845)
Strickland's woodpeckers, scientifically named Leuconotopicus stricklandi (Malherbe, 1845), reach an adult length of approximately 7 to 8 inches. Their plumage is primarily brown and white: upperparts are brown with a dark rump, while underparts are white and heavily speckled with brown spots. They typically have three white bars on the wings, and two white stripes across the face that connect to an additional white bar on the neck. Males have a red patch on the nape of the head, a feature that is absent in females. This species nests in a cavity it excavates from a dead tree trunk. The female lays 3 to 4 white eggs on a bed of wood chips; most other details about nesting timing and duration remain unknown. Strickland's woodpeckers are quiet, shy birds. They are fairly common within their restricted geographic range, which forms a narrow east-west band across central Mexico, stretching from Michoacán to Veracruz. They inhabit pine forests and mixed pine-oak slopes at elevations between roughly 4,500 and 7,000 feet.
