Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted or Red-shafted subspecies)

A medium-sized woodpecker with a barred back, spotted belly, and a black 'crescent' on the chest. Known for its flashing underwings and tail during flight.

Salmon-pink to reddish-orange shaft (rachis) and basal vanes, transitioning to a dark brownish-black or charcoal distal end. This specimen belongs to the Red-shafted form.

Tightly pennaceous with very stiff, rigid barbs. The distal end of the rachis is exceptionally stiffened to support the bird's weight while climbing.

Smooth and glossy on the dorsal surface, extremely rigid and stiff to the touch, feeling almost like plastic or bone toward the tip.

The distinctive brightly colored (red/pink) rachis combined with the stiff, pointed tip of a woodpecker tail feather.

Open woodlands, forest edges, yards, parks, and grasslands with scattered trees. Unlike most woodpeckers, they often forage on the ground.

Common across North America; Red-shafted forms are primarily found in the West, from the Great Plains to the Pacific Coast and south into Mexico.

Primary cavity nester; their abandoned holes provide essential nesting sites for secondary cavity nesters like bluebirds and small owls.

Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker (has yellow rachis), Gilded Flicker (found in desert SW, different color intensity/size).

The Northern Flicker is one of the few woodpecker species that is strongly migratory in the northern parts of its range. They primarily eat ants.

Good condition; showing slight wear at the tip consistent with the mechanical stress of bracing against bark.