Campethera Woodpecker - Katavi

> Adam
>
> This is really interesting, away from home at the mo, no books to hand, need to check Short, Woodpeckers of the World as well as BoA and the Helm guide.
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> If it's not an odd Golden-tailed an isolated race of Nubian would be more likely than an isolated race of Speckle-throated (on biogeographical grounds). You are quite correct that Golden-tailed (abingoni, all races) is streaked below. Don't pay any attention to the "golden tail", they all have this.
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> Good for everyone to check what serious books they have.
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> Neil
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Adam Kennedy
> To: Neil and Liz Baker ; tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 7:11 PM
> Subject: Campethera Woodpecker - Katavi
>
>
> Hi Neil et al.,
In addition to the other goodies on show in camp today was a Campethera woodpecker sp., see images attached.
While I?m happy that it is just a Golden-tailed Woodpecker, a species which I commonly see in camp, I just wanted to gauge the feeling among the other members of the group as it shows some unusual spotting on the chest and belly where one would normally expect streaking ? which is supposedly the classic ID feature for this species.
Looking at image 1, the bird shows the classic face pattern of black throat with white speckles, thus ruling out Bennet?s, Nubian, Mombasa and Speckle-throated. Ear coverts appear mostly plain. The black forecrown peppered white and red hindcrown indicate female, or possibly immature. All fine. But images 2 and 3 show that the belly and chest are in fact spotted rather than streaked. I wonder if this is simply a strongly marked immature bird?
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> If so, I wonder if such woodpeckers may have been mis-identified in Katavi as Nubian, which is on the park list but which I am yet to encounter in the main tourist square and which I would expect to occur in drier habitats (like Ruaha) that we tend to have here?
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> Cheers for now,
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> Adam
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> Neil and Liz Baker, Tanzania Bird Atlas, P.O. Box 1605, Iringa, Tanzania.
> Mobiles: 0776-360876 and 0776-360864.
> http://tanzaniabirdatlas.com
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