Golden-Fronted Woodpecker

The Golden-Fronted Woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons) is a North American woodpecker. Its primary habitats include riparian woodlands, mesquite, and tropical rainforests. In the United States, it is spread from Texas and Oklahoma through Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and northern Nicaragua. In 1884, Cooke described this species as a thriving inhabitant of Texas's lower Rio Grande Valley.

The Yucatan woodpecker (Melanerpes pygmaeus), which is likewise distributed throughout the Yucatán Peninsula, and the golden-fronted woodpecker have extremely similar plumage. In the field, it can be exceedingly challenging to tell these two species apart. The female golden-fronted woodpecker has more red on the nape of the neck than the male Yucatan woodpecker, and it is far more frequent. It also has a larger body and a longer beak. The Yucatan Woodpecker's base of the bill is surrounded by bright yellow feathers, in contrast to the golden-fronted woodpecker's reddish feathers. The barring pattern on the back of the golden-fronted woodpecker is such that it has a blackish appearance from a distance, whereas that of the Yucatan woodpecker has a silvery appearance from a distance. Finally, the vocalization of the Yucatan woodpecker is also quite different from that of the golden-fronted woodpecker.