bird family of the order Piciformes that includes woodpeckers, piculets, and wrynecks. The 210 species occur worldwide except in Madagascar and east of Borneo and Bali (i.e., they do not cross Wallace's Line). Most are specialized for gleaning insects from tree bark, usually by boring with their bills; some also eat nuts, fruits, and sap; and a few gather ants and grubs from the ground.