The American Ornithological Society, the Clements taxonomy, and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) treat them all as subspecies of the golden-fronted woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons).

In general the species has black and white barred upperparts and paler plain underparts with a colored patch on the belly.

The width of the black and white bars on the upperparts varies, generally from narrower in the north becoming wider in the south.

The base color of the tail is black, with an amount of white on the central and outermost pairs of feathers varying from very little in the north to much more in the south.

[5] The few studies of Velasquez's woodpecker have determined that its diet is adult and larval arthropods, some aerial insects, and much fruit and nuts.

The call of Velasquez's woodpecker is "a loud, slightly nasal, che'e'e'e" that is repeated up to three times.