The Common Flameback (is NOT an Internet Term for Trolling)
by Vanessa Ting
You may hear a ‘kow-owp-owp-owp’, or an impatient ‘ka-di-di-di’, but when you hear a series of rapid fire drums, you know that this woodpecker is hard at work. (Or you may not have heard these sounds before, which means that a walk in UM’s Rimba Ilmu, or any moist open forest, mangrove, or scrub, is in order. Here’s something to listen to before you go!)
Named for its golden back feathers, this handsome male Common Flameback (Dinopium javanese) also has a bright red crest and an orange/red spot on the back. The head sides are a beautiful contrast of black and white, with a black moustachial line all the way down to the upper breast. White feathers edged and tipped with black provide a scaled effect to the underparts.
Females share the same golden back but lack the scarlet plumage.
It may only have three toes but those toes are powerful! Imagine gripping a vertical, curved surface while excavating dinner. Locally known as the belatuk pinang kecil, the Indonesian moniker pelatuk besi gives more credit to this hardworking bird which probes into bark crevices in search of various insects and larvae. It also eats berries, fruits and seeds. Read more about the woodpecker’s habits here.
The male and the female set the forest alight during mating season by chasing each other through the trees, with all kinds of lovestruck antics – chest-raising, bowing, or head-swinging, with the male sometimes performing courtship feeding to the female. Their nests are usually found one to five metres above ground, in holes dug into tree trunks.
So far, their efforts have paid off: with its large range and stable population, the Common Flameback is currently listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List Category. Its range includes Southern India, Indochina, the Thai-Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Bali and Borneo, which makes it very easy for you to spot this beauty—keep an ear out during your next nature hike!
Photograph taken in Rimba Ilmu by Dr Teo Eng Wah, lecturer at Sports Centre, UM. In his free time he can be seen around UM’s green spaces with a camera and an eye out for UM’s wildlife.
Want more pictures in this article? Go for a walk and get (camera) trigger happy! We want all photographs of UM’s wildlife so email them to us!
