Yellow-shafted Flicker (subspecies of Northern Flicker)

The Northern Flicker is a unique woodpecker that often feeds on the ground. This feather displays the characteristic 'yellow-shafted' coloration that distinguishes eastern populations. The bird is known for its brown barred back, black breast crescent, and spotted belly.

The distal half is a soft creamy yellow to bright saffron yellow. The basal half is a muted brownish-gray. The rachis transitions from light brown to pale yellow.

Bipartite: pennaceous (tightly interlocked) at the distal tip; plumulaceous (loose/downy) at the proximal base for insulation.

The yellow tip is smooth and slightly glossy; the gray base is exceptionally soft, downy, and matte.

Distinct yellow pigmentation in the rachis and distal barbs combined with a downy gray base.

Open woodlands, forest edges, suburban yards, and parks where ground-foraging for ants is possible.

Widespread across North America; the Yellow-shafted form is primarily found in the East and North (East of the Rockies).

Keystone excavator; they create nesting cavities that are used by many secondary cavity-nesters. Also a major predator of ants.

Red-shafted Flicker (has salmon/red rachis), Gilded Flicker (found in deserts, slightly different yellow hue and size)

Unlike most woodpeckers, Northern Flickers prefer to hunt for ants underground using their long, barbed tongues. They are one of the few North American woodpeckers that are strongly migratory.

Good. The pennaceous tip is mostly intact, though there is minor separation of barbs. The downy section is slightly matted.