Pici (taxon)

Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar and the extreme polar regions. Most species live in forests or woodland habitats, although a few species are known that live in treeless areas, such as rocky hillsides and deserts, and the Gila woodpecker specializes in exploiting cacti.

suborder of birds

Ramphastides is an infraorder of the order Piciformes that includes toucans and barbets. Formerly, the barbets have been classified in a single family, the Capitonidae. However, this has turned out to be paraphyletic about toucans, which resulted in the Capitonidae being split into several families.

Picides is an infraorder of the order Piciformes that includes woodpeckers and honeyguides. The honeyguides were thought to be closely related to the barbets, as their aerial displays and vocalizations are more similar to each other than either are to woodpeckers. However, phylogenetic analysis has shown that honeyguides and woodpeckers are indeed sister taxa.