The ability of most piciform birds to excavate their own nest holes is probably a major factor responsible for their success. With relatively diverse types of bills, the jacamars, puffbirds, and barbets excavate nesting cavities, as do the sturdier billed woodpeckers, although the former utilize a softer substrate such as earth or dead trees. Woodpeckers alone within the order have biologically capitalized on their adaptations for excavating nests, by various further specializations for nesting (even in hard, living trees) and for foraging on the surface and within the bark of trees. They have thus exploited niches unavailable to other birds, a fact that accounts for their success relative to other members of the order. Yet because of their specialized habits, only a limited number of kinds of woodpeckers can exist together, usually no more than five to eight species (more in some tropical environments) differing somewhat in size and habits.

Because of the concealing nature of the nest cavity, the behaviour of hole-nesting birds is more difficult to study than that of species building exposed nests. The nesting behaviour of most piciform families must be inferred from observations on a few examples, the woodpeckers being the only group that has been extensively studied.

Jacamars are usually resident wherever they occur and nest at diverse times of the year depending on the locality. Nests are excavated in banks or in steep hills. Both sexes dig with the beak, kicking out dirt with their feet. The tunnel is comparatively short, usually less than 1 metre (3 feet) in depth. No lining is placed in the nest chamber at the end of the tunnel. Three or four white eggs are incubated by both sexes, with the female incubating at night. The incubation period of several species of jacamars is known to be from 19 to 21 days. The young are downy and hatch with their eyes closed. They remain for 20 to 26 days in their nest before leaving. Most of the food is made up of large insects brought to the young by both parents. The parents do not clean debris and fecal material of the young from the nest, which becomes littered.

Puffbirds excavate their nests in the ground or in termite nests on the ground or in trees. The tunnel is usually deeper than that of a jacamar, often reaching a metre or more into the ground. Several pairs may nest close together, semicolonially. Both sexes excavate the burrow. Some species leave the chamber at the end of the tunnel unlined, while others may line it with grass or dead leaves. Several species, including the white-whiskered puffbird (Malacoptila panamensis), pile sticks and leaves at the mouth of the nest tunnel, effectively concealing it. Both sexes incubate the two (occasionally three) white eggs. The newly hatched young are naked and are fed by both parents.

Although the majority of barbets nest in isolated pairs, there is a marked trend toward sociality. Large numbers of one or several species may gather to feed at a fruiting tree. Some species are found in family groups, and displaying groups of several individuals may be seen during the onset of breeding. The most social of all are the plain-coloured barbets (genus Gymnobucco) of Africa, the brown barbet (Calorhamphus fuliginosus) of southeastern Asia, and some species of the genus Megalaima of southern Asia. These nest colonially and feed in gatherings of up to 50 or more birds (Gymnobucco). They are aggressive, noisy birds and may take over an entire dead tree for nesting, driving away other bird species. In some barbets of the genera Semnornis and Megalaima, communal roosting occurs, with numbers of birds spending the night together in the same hole. Nests are usually excavated in trees, but a few species burrow into the ground or into termite nests. Both sexes excavate the cavity, which typically has a nearly round entrance, small for the size of the bird. The same cavity may be used for several nesting seasons. No lining material is placed in the nest cavity. The shape of the barbet’s bill, which is not at all chisel-tipped like that of a woodpecker, makes the excavation of cavities in trees a task requiring great effort, and it appears that only dead, well-rotted trees are used. Two to five white eggs are laid in the cavity; both parents then incubate the eggs for 13 to 15 days or more. Both also may spend the night in the nest. The young develop slowly, spending 30 or more days in the nest. The adults clean the nest, removing excreta. Often the young and adults continue to roost together after the young have left the nest, occupying a separate “dormitory” hole excavated for that purpose. On occasions, more than one pair of birds may use the same nest (white-eared tinkerbird, Pogoniulus leucotus).

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Most if not all of the honey guides are brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other species, especially those that nest in holes or in deep, covered nests. The host’s eggs often are punctured by the female honey guide when she lays her own egg. Only a single egg is laid in each host’s nest. Because of the parasitic habit, the incubation periods of honey guides are not well known, but periods of 12 to 16 days have been found in species of Indicator. The young birds spend a long time in the nest, 35 to 40 days or more. When newly hatched, they have hooks on the tips of their bills, which are used to injure and kill the young of the host species. These hooks later fall off.

Toucans nest in natural cavities or in old woodpecker nests. Smaller species may usurp a nest freshly constructed by woodpeckers. Old, well-rotted cavities may be enlarged slightly. One to four eggs are laid on the floor of the nest, which may be unlined or lined with a few leaves. About 16 days are required for incubation, performed by both sexes. The birds are shy about the nest and hence difficult to observe. The young, naked when hatched, bear large pads on their heels, on which they perch in the nest. The nestling period is generally long, up to seven weeks or more, varying with the size of the birds. Toucans, except the toucanets (genus Aulacorhynchus), do not maintain clean nests. Family groups may remain together for a long time, for small flocks are often seen throughout the year.

Wrynecks usually nest in natural crevices, old woodpecker holes, or old swallow holes in banks. They lay 2 to 14 eggs, and both sexes incubate. Like the American flicker and probably other woodpeckers, the wryneck is an indeterminate layer; that is, it produces eggs until a certain number have accumulated.

The nests of piculets are constructed in small trees, stubs, fence posts, and the like. The entrance is tiny and rounded, resembling a barbet nest entrance. Two to four eggs are laid and incubated for about two weeks. The initially blind and naked young grow for three weeks or more before leaving the nest for the first time. Both parents incubate and feed the young, and in at least some species they both remain in the nest at night. After fledging, the young may continue to roost in the nest at night with their parents for several months. Like the wrynecks and most other birds and unlike woodpeckers, the piculets often perch crosswise on branches.

The reproductive behaviour of woodpeckers is better known than that of most other Piciformes. The sexes are clearly marked by simple pattern differences, most commonly involving the presence or absence of red on the head. Observations at bird-feeding stations suggest that sexual recognition occurs throughout the year, with males dominant over females. Aggressive displays are conspicuous and numerous in woodpeckers, including various head postures centring on the bill, bill pointing, head turning, swinging of the head and body from side to side, bobbing and bowing of the head, wing flicking and spreading, tail spreading and turning, and even aerial displays. These displays exhibit the complex head markings, as well as the body, tail, and wing patterns found in most species. Many vocal and instrumental signals are used, including the widely prevalent tapping or drumming of the bill against a tree or, in cities, on tin roofing.

Most woodpeckers actively defend territories, often throughout the year. This perhaps accounts for their strongly developed aggressive behaviour. Few species are markedly social, but members of the New World genus Melanerpes especially tend to be, even while nesting. Up to 11 different adults of the yellow-tufted woodpecker (M. cruentatus) were observed feeding young in three different nests in eastern Peru. Some of the adults fed young in two and even in all three nests. Andean flickers nest in loose colonies in banks and may be seen in groups of 10 or 12 birds. Otherwise, social gatherings of woodpeckers generally involve family groups during and sometimes after the breeding season. Most woodpeckers are aggressive toward others of their own species, even to some extent toward their mates and young. Aggressive encounters are most frequent between members of the same sex. When an intruding woodpecker invades the territory of a pair during the breeding season, it usually is attacked by the member of the pair that is of the same sex as the intruder. Conflicts between birds after the breeding period are more intense when the woodpeckers involved are of the same sex. Experiments with the North American flicker show that even paired birds recognize each other primarily by their sexual colour markings. For example, a female given an artificial black moustache stripe (characteristic of the male) was attacked and pursued unceasingly by her mate until the experimenter rescued the exhausted female and removed the “moustache.” She was once again fully accepted by her mate.

Nests are excavated by the birds themselves, although a few species will accept artificial nest boxes. Two species, the ground woodpecker and the Andean flicker, always nest in the ground, digging nests in banks, and the campo flicker of South America often does so. Other woodpeckers chisel holes in trees, fence poles, cacti, or similar sites. Usually both sexes construct the nest, but either sex may do most of the work, depending on the species. The nest cavity varies with the size of the bird. A flicker 30 cm (12 inches) long was found incubating eggs in a tree stub only 12 cm (5 inches) thick, so less space is required for nesting than one might expect. Nevertheless, the size of the stub or tree necessary for nesting is proportional to the size of the woodpecker. Also, the size and abundance of dead or dying trees influence the abundance and types of woodpeckers that can occupy an area.

From two to nine white eggs are laid on the bare floor of the woodpecker’s nest cavity. Most species probably are indeterminate layers. By removing the freshly laid eggs as they appeared daily, one experimenter induced a female flicker to lay a total of 71 eggs. The incubation period of woodpeckers varies from 11 to 20 or more days. Both adults incubate the eggs, and typically the male alone occupies the nest during the night. The young are naked and helpless when hatched and spend up to 36 days in the nest. Both parents feed the young and keep the nest clean by removing excreta frequently. In some species the young are driven off by the adults soon after they can feed themselves; in others the family remains together longer, sometimes even until the next breeding season.

Vocalizations

The voices of Piciformes are rarely melodious and are often harsh or strident. The vocalizations of jacamars are squeaky, the notes sometimes being run together into a trill. Whistles or trills may be alternated or mixed, forming a simple song. Puffbirds are relatively quiet, producing thin whistles, peeps, and twitters. The vocalizations of toucans are loud and often harsh, especially those of the larger species, such as those in the genus Ramphastos. The calls of barbets are monotonous and repetitive, but some are bell-like and pleasing to the ear, especially those rendered antiphonally (that is, in alternation) or simultaneously by members of a pair. Displays may accompany this singing. With some colour patterns like their relatives the woodpeckers, barbets have similar displays, such as head swinging, head bobbing, bill pointing, and others.

Although the vocalizations of woodpeckers are individually less complicated than the songs of passeriform birds (the order that includes the songbirds), up to eight or nine different and varying calls may be used by some species (such as the ladder-backed woodpecker, D. scalaris). These function as “advertising songs” (usually repetitive, often harsh “rattle” or “wick” calls), as aggressive or submissive calls associated with displays, and in other ways.