The Green Woodpecker by Gorman Gerard;

Author:Gorman, Gerard;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pelagic Publishing

FIGURE 12.1 Green Woodpeckers often copulate near the nesting cavity. Emilia-Romagna, Italy, May 2019 (ET).

Reverse mounting

Another form of solicitation, which is only occasionally observed, is ‘reverse mounting’. This entails a female mounting a male in apparent mock copulation. While it is not uncommon among other birds, this behaviour has not been widely documented in woodpeckers (Gorman 2020b). Although the precise function of reverse mounting is unclear, it is probably a fairly regular part of courtship behaviour, playing a role in strengthening the pair-bond and encouraging further genuine copulations. By mounting the back of the male, a female can probably initiate mating proper (Winkler et al. 1995).

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