Campephilus is a genus of large American woodpeckers in the family Picidae.

This genus was created by George Robert Gray, who suggested taking Campephilus principalis as the type for the genus. The name Campephilus means "lover of grubs" - an allusion to the diet of these birds, many of which feed on the larvae of wood-boring beetles. Contrary to long-held opinion, their closest relatives are not the large black Dryocopus woodpeckers: instead, they are related to the Chrysocolaptes flamebacks from Southeast Asia (Benz et al., 2006).

The English names ivory-billed woodpecker or ivorybill are sometimes used to refer to members of this genus, though more these are used specifically for Campephilus principalis.

Species [edit]

• Powerful Woodpecker, Campephilus pollens
• Crimson-bellied Woodpecker, Campephilus haematogaster
• Red-necked Woodpecker, Campephilus rubricollis
• Robust Woodpecker, Campephilus robustus
• Crimson-crested Woodpecker, Campephilus melanoleucos
• Guayaquil Woodpecker, Campephilus gayaquilensis
• Pale-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus guatemalensis
• Cream-backed Woodpecker, Campephilus leucopogon
• Magellanic Woodpecker, Campephilus magellanicus
• Ivory-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus principalis - probably extinct (late 20th century)
  • Cuban Ivory-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus (principalis) bairdii - extinct (late 20th century)
• Imperial Woodpecker, Campephilus imperialis - possibly extinct (late 20th century)

A fossil ivorybill species, Campephilus dalquesti, was described from bones found in Late Pleistocene deposits of Scurry County.

References [edit]

• Benz, Brett W.; Robbins, Mark B. & Peterson, A. Townsend (2006): Evolutionary history of woodpeckers and allies (Aves: Picidae): Placing key taxa on the phylogenetic tree. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 40: 389–399. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.02.021