Northern Sooty-Woodpecker Mulleripicus funebris Scientific name definitions

30–32 cm; 139–183 g. Male  has dark red forehead  and forecrown, lores, cheeks  , malar region  and front of ear-coverts, usually some black feather bases showing, sometimes red not extending far on to crown; rest of head and neck black, sometimes slightly greyish on throat , finely speckled with white (spots sometimes lacking); entire upperparts , including wings  and tail, blue-glossed black  ; underparts slightly paler, more sooty-black, unglossed, rarely a few small pale spots on breast; in worn plumage, browner and less glossy, fewer or no spots, black feather bases more visible on face; longish bill  almost pointed, culmen curved, narrow across nostrils, pale horn-yellow with blackish along culmen and at base; iris pale yellow; legs brownish-grey. Female  has entire head  blackish with fine white spots  , spots sometimes few or absent. Juvenile as adult, but duller and browner, without gloss, pale spots bigger but less sharp, male with red face like adult. Race mayri tends to have longer bill and longer tail than nominate, but considerable overlap in measurements, bill yellowish-grey or ivory-yellow with grey base; parkesi is very like nominate, perhaps on average slightly larger, red on male’s head not reaching to forecrown.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Since 1940s until recently, has been considered conspecific with M. fuliginosus, but differs in its distinctly darker body plumage (2); red on male’s face extending from forehead back to forecrown, anterior ear-coverts and malar vs confined to submoustachial streak (2) and burgundy vs scarlet (2); smaller white spots on chin, throat, upper neck, neck sides and hindcrown (ns[1]); overall slightly larger size, with notably longer tail (effect size for tail 3.6; score 2); and call resembling a “soccer referee’s whistle”, apparently lacking in fuliginosus. Races mayri and parkesi differ little from nominate, and may be better synonymized. Three subspecies currently recognized.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Evergreen forest , secondary forest, forest edge, and near cultivations, also montane oak (Quercus) and pine (Pinus) forest above 300 m, to 1000 m, occasionally or locally to c. 1600 m External link .

No documented information on diet; presumed to feed mainly on arboreal invertebrates. Usually singly or in pairs, members of which maintain frequent vocal contact. Forages in upper storeys, above 20 m, in tall trees, both live ones and partly or fully dead ones; also descends to understorey, on tree trunks and large limbs.

Distinctive trill, “chil-lel-lel-lel-lel-lel”, c. 1 second long and likened to sound of a soccer referee’s whistle, repeated at irregular intervals, sometimes every 5–10 seconds; foraging pair-members call to maintain contact. Drums  in solid, powerful, variable but usually accelerating roll lasting 1–2 seconds, consisting of 20 or more strikes.

Specimens with enlarged gonads in Mar, and recently fledged juvenile seen in May; season reported as Mar–May in Luzon and Polillo. Nest and eggs not described.

Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. Uncommon to locally fairly common; reasonably common in e.g. Sierra Madre and the Subic Bay area of Luzon. Inconspicuous in its forest habitat and may be overlooked. Global population size not quantified, but suspected to be in moderately rapid decline owing to continuing destruction and degradation of forest habitats across the species’ range; were it not for this woodpecker’s tolerance of modified and disturbed habitats, the rate of decline would be greater. Deforestation in Philippines has been very rapid in recent decades, and the country is thought to have lost c. 40% of its forest cover in the 20-year period between 1970 and 1990 (1 Uitamo, E. (1999). Modelling deforestation caused by the expansion of subsistence farming in the Philippines. J. Forest Economics. 5(1): 99–122. Close ); data from ESSC (Environmental Science for Social Change) suggest that the area of closed-canopy forest in the islands decreased by c. 44% between 1987 and 2002 (2 Walpole, P. (2010). Figuring the Forest Figures: Understanding Forest Cover Data in the Philippines and where we might be proceeding. Environmental Science for Social Change, Quezon City, Philippines. Close ). Protected areas are not immune from encroachment: in Bataan Natural Park (Luzon), for example, old-growth forest is estimated to have declined by 65% between 1987–1993 and 2002. Forest is being lost principally for timber extraction and agricultural expansion (3 Suarez, R.K. and Sajise, P.E. (2010). Deforestation, swidden agriculture and Philippine biodiversity. Philippine Science Letters. 3(1): 91–99. Close , 4 Lasco, R., Pulhin, F., Bugayong, L. and Mendoza, M. (2011). An assessment of potential benefits to smallholders of REDD+ components in the Philippines. Annals of Tropical Research. 33(1): 31–48. Close ), other causes being mining and development. Occurs in Quezon National Park (Luzon) and in several other nominally protected areas. This species is very poorly known. Field studies and surveys are urgently needed, in order to assess the total population size and to determine details of its diet and feeding ecology, as well as its nesting behaviour. Habitat restoration should be undertaken, and the area of suitable habitat that receives effective protection must be increased.