The acoustic communication of the Eurasian Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis)

Abstract

Abstract Woodpeckers, having a fairly well-defined range of acoustic signals, offer a valuable opportunity to link acoustic repertoires to behavioural observations. Instrumental and vocal sounds from more than 70 individual Eurasian Green Woodpeckers were analysed using 305 sound recordings. Eighteen separate acoustic signals are described, together with field observations of associated behaviour. Sixteen are illustrated by clear spectrograms supporting the phonetic descriptions. With one exception, calls consisted of repeated elements, with the first element often containing varying degrees of emphasis. Variation within call types, especially the advertising call, differentiated individuals and their motivation and did not appear to be regionally significant. Instrumental signals, while soft and easily overlooked, constituted an important intimate communication between breeding pairs.