Characterization: Small species measuring about 17.5cm in length. This bird has two white lines on the side of its head, clearly barred greenish yellow upper portions, and the stained lower parts. The female has brown dark apex, which is red on the male.

Distribution: From Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais to Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay, Paraguay, and northern Argentina.

Habitat: Forest.

Habits: A diurnal species, it likes to associate temporarily with mixed flocks of woodcreepers, tanagers, and other birds that roam the woods. It is aggressive when caught by man, and defends itself pecking, with half-open jaws, leaving two holes in the hand of anyone holding it.

Diet: Carnivorous, feeding on insect larvae, primarily beetles.

Breeding: It lays 2 to 4 eggs in nests dug out in trees.

In the UFRA area: In the studies done in the São Francisco Sugarmill areas, this woodpecker species is considered rare, having been seen only 2 times. Its distribution was restricted to native forests.