Bird Journal: Northern Flicker

Northern Flicker - photo courtesy of Pixabay

I knew it!  I just couldn't prove it! Until recently. There are Northern Flickers at The Shack. I'm thrilled to have finally positively identified one. And through the excitement of seeing an elusive Flicker I am learning a bit more about them.

When I lived in my previous apartment, a single Northern Flicker sat perched on a tall, dead tree very near to my 3rd floor balcony. That is how I became familiar with what the large woodpeckers looked like. I moved away from that apartment and hadn't seen a Flicker since.

At The Shack, a couple of years ago, I thought I saw a Flicker. But it was at a distance. I let self-doubt creep in.

Flicker at the birdbath with the support of a bluebird.

During the camping trip in February the Flicker came to visit my birdbath! Several times. The Flicker was bashful, clearly knowing that there was motion inside of The Shack. He flew away every time I moved even the slightest bit. While the bluebirds clearly know when I am present (they seem to look in the windows to see if I'm there) they allow me to move around in front of the window and take photos of them. So I moved my position (hiding behind the wall) and propped my camera up (I REALLY need a tripod) and I waited. Eventually, the Flicker joined the bluebirds. I could barely contain my excitement.

The next morning, if I held perfectly still, the Flicker came on his own.

My photos aren't very clear because the double-pane windows at The Shack have some condensation between the panes at the bottom. But between my photos and watching with the binoculars, I clearly see that I have a male Northern Flicker as a neighbor! And in the morning light, his colors are especially beautiful.

For a bit, I thought I may also have a female Flicker present. But I did not get photos of her. And it may have just been the male but at angles that made his mustache hard to see.  You can be sure I will continue to watch for the Flickers and hope that it is a pair living there. 

 a Flicker's colors are beautiful - even through a foggy window

Northern Flickers

Since seeing the male Flicker, I have looked up some additional information. I now know that:

• Male Flickers (eastern) have a black "mustache" and the females do not (western birds have a red mustache)
• Other identifying colors of the yellow-shafted birds in the east include a white rump (visible in flight), red crescent on the back of the head, and a black bib. They also have grey and tan shades of face.
• Northern Flickers are woodpeckers but they also spend a good deal of time on the ground (which I observed in my yard)
• They eat mainly ants and beetles (which may explain why they like my woods. I'm told many of my trees are dead from beetle-kill). 
• Flickers aren't known to frequently visit bird feeders but do like birdbaths (yay!)
• Northern Flickers are migratory - although in West Virginia, the map shows that they remain year 'round.
• Northern Flickers nest in hollow trees. 

Related Links:

For more information about the Northern Flickers, including recordings of their sounds, visit theCornellLab's All About Birds site. I cannot access the internet at The Shack, but when I return to the land of internet connections it is my favorite site for identifying birds.

Because my woods is dying and the hollow trees are falling down, I want to put a nesting box (or two) up for the Flickers. NestWatch includes measurements and tips for making bird boxes specifically for the species of birds. 

I keep a bird identification book handy since the internet is not accessible while at The Shack.  I like the DK Smithsonian Handbooks: Birds of North America. While more expert birders would recommend other field guides, I like this one because it is easy for a novice to use and the photos are in color and very helpful.




*This article may contain affiliate links. If you shop via one of the affiliate links, I may earn a small commission - at no additional cost to you. I am very appreciative of every reader who visits my articles. Thank you.