Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)
Description: A flicker is a large woodpecker that has a rounded and slim hear, a tail that is flared to a point and a down curved bill. These birds are mostly brown with a white patch that is obvious when the flicker is in flight. The udnerside of the wings differs depending on where they live in hemispheres. Eastern birds have bright yellow feathers while the western birds have red color on the underside of their wings.
Habitat: These birds live in open habitats near woodlands, yards, parks, and trees. They may also be found in the mountain forests in the trees.
Diet: The main diet of these birds includes many insects. Ants and beetles are gathered from the ground so that the Northern Flicker can eat them. Fruits and seeds are eaten mainly in the winter when it is hard for them to find insects, The Flicker also gathers ants from underground by pecking at the soil (like it would to wood) then using its tongue which can dart out two inches to catch its prey. One surprising food that the flicker can eat is poison ivy and poison oak. They also eat grapes, sunflower seeds, and other kinds of berries.
Behaviors:
Miscellaneous:
Habitat: These birds live in open habitats near woodlands, yards, parks, and trees. They may also be found in the mountain forests in the trees.
Diet: The main diet of these birds includes many insects. Ants and beetles are gathered from the ground so that the Northern Flicker can eat them. Fruits and seeds are eaten mainly in the winter when it is hard for them to find insects, The Flicker also gathers ants from underground by pecking at the soil (like it would to wood) then using its tongue which can dart out two inches to catch its prey. One surprising food that the flicker can eat is poison ivy and poison oak. They also eat grapes, sunflower seeds, and other kinds of berries.
Behaviors:
- Its flying pattern is consisten to other woodpeckers in that it rises and falls smoothly throughout its flight
- Fencing dueling is common among these birds in the summer to fight for a mate. They will face each other and point their bills upwards and draw a figure eight pattern in the air.
- While making a nest, it is both the male and females job to build it
- At about seventeen days old, the nestlings will use the wall of the hole to cling to instead of just staying on the floor.
Miscellaneous:
- There are two forms of Northern Flickers; the red-shafted and the yellow-shafted