206 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 
BRACHYPTERNUS ERYTHRONOTUS (Blanford, Vol. III., p. 60). 
BRACHYPTERNUS CEYLONUS (Legge, p. 202). 
The Red-backed Woodpecker. 
Description.—In the typical form from the south of the 
Island, where B. aurantius is not found, the present species 
differs from the last named as follows :—The middle of the 
back and the scapulars are bright crimson, the wing coverts 
and outer webs of the secondaries are duller crimson, while 
the black of the lower back and rump is faintly tinged with 
the same colour; the spots on the wing coverts are, as a 
rule, fewer and tinged with the colour of the mantle, they may 
be almost absent ; the white stripes above and below the eye 
are considerably reduced in breadth. In the north of the 
Island, where both species are found together, the Red-backed 
Woodpecker approaches the Golden-backed form more nearly. 
The crimson of the mantle is tinged with orange, and the 
white stripes down the head and neck are more conspicuous. 
Some specimens seem to be undoubted crosses. 
The sexual differences in plumage are as in B. aurantius. 
Bill blackish ; iris red ; legs and feet dusky green. 
Length about 11°5 ; wing 5°5; tail 4; tarsus +7; bill from 
gape 1:5. 
Distribution —Peculiar to Ceylon. Found all over the 
low-country, except in the extremely dry maritime coast 
tracts of the north-west and south-east. It ascends the hills 
to about 4,000 feet. 
Habits, d&-c.—This is the most abundant of our Woodpeckers, 
being equally common in plantations and forest. It always 
alights near the bottom of a tree and works its way spirally 
to the top, tapping the trunk for insects. It feeds largely 
on red ants. The flight is undulatory and jerky ; the cry a 
loud harsh scream. The breeding season is from about March 
to June, and again in September. The nest is the usual 
hole in the stem of a decaying coconut or other tree. The 
three eggs in appearance closely resemble those of the last 
species, and have approximately the same measurements. 
