• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic note
A recent comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the Picidae recovered the genus Dinopium as paraphyletic, with Olive-backed Woodpecker D. rafflesii (del Hoyo & Collar 2014) sister to Pale-headed Woodpecker Gecinulus grantia. Kirwan & Collar (2020), having presented evidence that rafflesii is a distinctive woodpecker divergent from both Dinopium and Gecinulus, reviewed previous treatments and established, as firmly as the limited evidence allows, that the earliest generic name available for the species is Chloropicoides Malherbe, 1849. Original description previously attributed to Vigors and Horsfield, but Vigors alone was the author (Bruce 2003). Individual variation considerable, and subspecies poorly marked, differing only in size; described subspecies peninsulare (Malacca, in Peninsular Malaysia) considered synonymous with nominate. Two subspecies recognized.

Taxonomic source(s)
Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International. 2022. Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 7. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v7_Dec22.zip.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2024	Near Threatened	A2c+3c+4c
2016	Near Threatened	A2c+3c+4c
2012	Near Threatened	A2c+3c+4c
2008	Near Threatened	A2c; A3c; A4c
2004	Near Threatened
2000	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1994	Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988	Lower Risk/Least Concern

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	high
Land-mass type	continent shelf island	Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	3,860,000 km2	medium
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	unknown	-	-	-
Population trend	decreasing	poor	inferred	2016-2029
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	20-29%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	20-29%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the past & future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	20-29%	-	-	-
Generation length	4.29 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	3-50	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	1-89%	-	-	-

Population justification: The global population size of this species has not been quantified, but it is generally scarce in its range (Wells 1999, Eaton et al. 2021, eBird 2024) in remaining tracts of lowland forest, which remain widespread, although much reduced in extent compared to three generations ago. Accordingly, its global population size is likely to be relatively large.

Trend justification: No direct population trend data are available for this species, however remote sensing data are considered a suitable proxy for this forest-dependent species. Over the past three generations, forest cover within its range reduced by c. 18-22% (Global Forest Watch [2024], based on data from Hansen et al. [2013] and methods therein). This species is commonest at lower elevations, where rates have been most rapid, and the species may be additionally impacted by forest degradation and fragmentation. Accordingly, rates of population reduction may be slightly higher than remote sensing data alone indicate. Accordingly, the rate of population reduction for the past three generations is set at 20-29%.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Brunei	extant	native	yes
Indonesia	extant	native	yes
Malaysia	extant	native	yes
Myanmar	extant	native	yes
Singapore	extinct	native	yes
Thailand	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Malaysia	Belum-Temenggor
Malaysia	Bintang Range
Malaysia	Central Titiwangsa Range
Malaysia	Danum Valley Conservation Area
Malaysia	Endau-Rompin
Malaysia	Gunung Penrissen
Malaysia	Gunung Pueh
Malaysia	Kabili-Sepilok
Malaysia	Kelabit Highlands
Malaysia	Kinabatangan floodplain
Malaysia	Krau Wildlife Reserve
Malaysia	Lambir Hills National Park
Malaysia	Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary
Malaysia	Maliau Basin Conservation Area
Malaysia	Mount Kinabalu
Malaysia	Mulu - Buda Protected Area
Malaysia	Panti forest
Malaysia	Pondok Tanjung Forest Reserve
Malaysia	Selangor Heritage Park
Malaysia	Similajau National Park
Malaysia	South-east Pahang peat swamp forest
Malaysia	Tabin Wildlife Reserve
Malaysia	Taman Negara National Park
Malaysia	Tanjung Datu-Samunsam Protected Area
Thailand	Bala Sector, Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary
Thailand	Chaloem Pra Kiet (Pa Phru to Daeng)
Thailand	Kaeng Krachan
Thailand	Khao Luang
Thailand	Khao Nor Chuchi

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Mangrove Vegetation Above High Tide Level	suitable	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Lowland	major	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Montane	suitable	resident
Altitude	0 - 1600 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Agro-industry farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Small-holder farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Agriculture & aquaculture	Wood & pulp plantations - Agro-industry plantations	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (large scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation
Natural system modifications	Fire & fire suppression - Increase in fire frequency/intensity	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation

Purpose	Scale
Pets/display animals, horticulture	subsistence, national, international

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Olive-backed Woodpecker Chloropicoides rafflesii. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/olive-backed-woodpecker-chloropicoides-rafflesii on 22/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 22/11/2024.