Diet and Foraging

The diet of Golden-naped Woodpecker is varied. They will chisel into decaying trunks and branches for grubs and beetles. They also capture insects on the wing; when winged broods of termites fills the air, these woodpeckers act as aerial flycatchers (Skutch 1948). Golden-naped Woodpeckers eat a variety of fruits, from the berries of melastomes, succulent bananas, and well-ripened plantains to the dry, green, pistillate spikes of the Cecropia tree and the hard fruits of pejibaye (Guilielma utilis). Golden-naped Woodpeckers also visit the nectar cups beneath the inflorescences of Marcgruvia, probably drinking nectar and capturing small insects (Skutch 1969).