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

A medium-sized woodpecker with a barred brown back and spotted underparts. The most striking feature is the flash of red or yellow under the wings and tail during flight.

Vibrant salmon-red to orange-red on the ventral surface and along the rachis (typical of the Red-shafted form) with a dark brownish-black dorsal surface and tip.

Densely interlocked pennaceous barbs providing a rigid structure; notable for the extreme stiffness of the rachis near the tip.

Smooth and glossy on the colorful side; exceptionally stiff and springy to the touch; the tip feels sharp and durable.

The brightly colored red or yellow central shaft (rachis) and the needle-like, reinforced tip of the tail feather.

Open woodlands, forest edges, yards, and parks; uniquely for a woodpecker, they spend significant time foraging on the ground for ants.

Widespread across North America, from the treeline in Canada and Alaska south to Mexico and the Gulf Coast.

Primary cavity nesters that create homes for many other 'secondary' cavity-using species like bluebirds and small owls.

Gilded Flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) has yellow shafts but is restricted to desert southwest habitats; other woodpeckers lack the bright colorful rachis.

Unlike most woodpeckers, Northern Flickers primarily eat ants and beetles they dig out of the ground with their slightly curved bills.

Good condition; showing slight wear at the very tip, suggesting it was used effectively as a prop before being molted.