Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted subspecies), also known as the Common Flicker or Yellowhammer

The Northern Flicker is a large, brownish woodpecker with a barred back and spotted underparts. It features a prominent black crescent on the breast and, in the 'Yellow-shafted' form, a red nuchal patch on the back of the head. In flight, it reveals a bright white rump and flashing yellow underwings.

Base color is a soft grayish-beige or 'fawn' color. Each feather features a sharp, bold black spot or crescent near the tip. In the Yellow-shafted subspecies found in Wisconsin, the hidden shafts (rachis) of larger wing/tail feathers exhibit bright yellow pigments, though these body feathers show darker, neutral shafts.

The distal portion is pennaceous with interlocked barbs, while the proximal half (base) is highly plumulaceous (downy) and loose, providing specialized insulation.

The surface is soft and silky to the touch, with a matte appearance. The plumulaceous base gives the feathers a very airy, fuzzy texture characteristic of insulating body feathers.

Ovoid to heart-shaped black spots on a light tan/gray background, combined with a thick downy base. No other North American bird has this specific combination of bold ventral spotting and bicolored barb structure.

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

Common year-round resident in the eastern United States and Canada. Northern populations are migratory, while those in Southeastern Wisconsin may be year-round residents or short-distance migrants.

Primary cavity nester; they create holes in dead trees that are later used by dozens of other species (secondary cavity nesters) such as Bluebirds and Screech-Owls. They also help control ant populations.

The 'Red-shafted' Flicker (Western US) has similar spotting but different feather shaft pigments. Other woodpeckers like the Hairy or Downy Woodpeckers have spots, but they are typically white-on-black rather than black-on-tan.

Northern Flickers are the only North American woodpeckers that are strongly migratory. They are also unique for their diet, as they consume more ants than almost any other North American bird, using their long, sticky tongues to lick them from the ground.

The feathers appear slightly disheveled and are clumped together on the ground, suggesting a 'predation pile' (leftovers from a hawk or owl) rather than a natural molt. The barbs are mostly intact but show some ruffling from handling or wind.

Southeastern Wisconsin