It is found in Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo and western Cameroon.

The breast is cream with dark chevrons on the flanks, the central region and belly being scarlet as far as the vent.

[2] The fire-bellied woodpecker is native to tropical West Africa, its range extending from Upper Guinea and Sierra Leone eastwards to southern Nigeria and western Cameroon.

It is found in the lowlands and foothills, its habitat being clearings and edges of primary rainforest; it is also found in gallery forest, scattered woodland, partially logged and degraded areas, wooded savannah and scrubby bush, and there are usually some large dead trees within its range.

Both sexes drum in the dry season in repeated, short rapid bursts, at the rate of 14 to 38 strikes per second.