Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted or Red-shafted)

The Northern Flicker is a large, unique woodpecker that spends much of its time on the ground foraging for ants and beetles. Unlike most woodpeckers, they have a brownish, barred back and a spotted breast with a prominent black crescent on the chest.

Dark brownish-black background with bold, clean white or pale buff barring across both vanes, featuring a dark central rachis.

Pennaceous vane with tightly interlocked barbs and barbicels for most of the length, transitioning to a slightly plumulaceous base with a small aftershaft.

Smooth, firm, and matte texture with strong vane cohesion and slight flexibility.

Distinctive dark brown or blackish feather background sharply contrasted with clean, rounded white bars or spots.

Open woodlands, forest edges, clearings, suburban parks, and semi-open country with scattered trees and snags.

Widespread across North America, extending south into parts of Central America and the Caribbean; northern populations are migratory while southern populations are year-round residents.

Flickers are a keystone species; the tree cavities they excavate for nesting are subsequently used by dozens of other secondary cavity-nesting birds and mammals.

Red-bellied Woodpecker and Downy Woodpecker feathers, though other species generally lack the distinct, bold barring pattern found on Northern Flicker upperparts.

Northern Flickers can eat thousands of ants in a single day, using a specialized barbed tongue that can extend nearly two inches beyond the tip of their bill.

Good condition, fresh appearance with intact barbs and minimal fraying at the tip.