Yellow-crowned Woodpecker

Medium-sized woodpecker with a densely-spotted black-and-white back and blotchy brown-and-white underparts. Female has an all-golden crown; male has a red forecrown. Where it overlaps with Brown-fronted Woodpecker, note blotchier brown striping on the underparts, pale vent, and duller crown. Gives sharp notes and a high descending rattle. Favors dry arid areas with relatively open foliage.

In Sri Lanka, the Yellow-crowned Woodpecker primarily inhabits dry open woodlands, scrublands, and disturbed forest edges, particularly favoring areas with large Euphorbia antiquorum trees, mostly found in the lowlands and mid-hills, with a preference for dry zones and less frequently in the wet zone evergreen forests; it can also be spotted in well-wooded gardens bordering these habitats.

In Sri Lanka, the Yellow-crowned Woodpecker primarily feeds on insects like caterpillars, grubs, and bark-dwelling insects, along with fruits and nectar, often foraging on large Euphorbia antiquorum trees prevalent in dry regions of the country; their diet largely consists of insects gleaned from the bark of trees.