Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)

This is a vibrant tail feather from a Northern Flicker, a large, unique woodpecker known for its ground-foraging habits. The bird itself is brownish with black barring on the back, a black crescent on the chest, and a white rump visible in flight. In the East, the undersides of the wings and tail are bright yellow.

Boldly bicolored. The base and tip are bright golden-yellow, while the mid-section contains a large, dark brown to blackish teardrop-shaped patch. The rachis (shaft) is a vibrant, translucent yellow.

Largely pennaceous with a very tight, interlocking structure to provide rigidity. The base shows a small amount of plumulaceous (downy) barbs near the calamus.

The surface is smooth and glossy on the dorsal side, with a very stiff, almost plastic-like feel to the rachis, which allows the bird to use the tail as a tripod when climbing.

The brilliant yellow shaft (rachis) combined with the specific dark brown distal marking on a yellow background is an unmistakable diagnostic feature of this species.

Open woodlands, forest edges, yards, and parks. Unlike many woodpeckers, they are frequently seen foraging on the ground for ants.

The Yellow-shafted subspecies is found throughout the Eastern and Northern parts of North America, from the Atlantic coast to the Rocky Mountains and north into Alaska.

Flickers are primary cavity nesters, creating holes in trees that are later used by many other species of birds and mammals. They play a major role in controlling ant and beetle populations.

The Red-shafted Northern Flicker (Western North America) is identical in pattern but with salmon-red or orange shafts. Some hybrids exist in the Great Plains showing intermediate colors.

Northern Flickers are one of the few North American woodpeckers that are strongly migratory. They also have an incredibly long, barbed tongue that can extend 2 inches past their beak to reach ants inside tunnels.

The feather appears to be in Good to Excellent condition, showing minimal wear at the tip and no significant parasitic damage or fault bars.