Lineated Woodpecker

Rony, our guide in Tikal NP, Guatemala, heard the hammering of a woodpecker in the trees near us. He quietly entered into the thick trees and waved for me to follow him. It was quite dark. Soon he pointed to a beautiful woodpecker hammering against a tree which he identified as a lineated woodpecker. It looked quite a bit like the pileated woodpecker I'd seen in Nevada City, California last year and it turns out they are closely related. They are mainly black above with a red crest and whitish lines from the base of the bill, down the neck and shoulders. The underparts are whitish, heavily barred with black. Males have red on the cheek and forehead which females lack (I saw a female that lacked the red cheek and forehead). The bill is typically black, but pale-billed individuals are regularly seen and the one I saw had a pale bill.

 

There are five subspecies. I saw ssp. similis which is found in eastern and southern Mexico south to northwestern Costa Rica. Ssp. similis has a pale bill and the white on it is dull to bluish white and its underparts are buffy. 

Illustration of ssp. lineatus, the nominate ssp., from Birds of the World. There was not an illustration of ssp. similis. Note the red forehead and red cheek indicating it is a male. 

This is an illustration of ssp. lineatus, a female, from Birds of the World. It lacks the red forehead and red cheek.  

This is the range from Birds of the World.