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Northern Flicker

Colaptes auratus

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Colaptes auratus by linthicum
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Order
Piciformes
Family
Picidae
Genus
Colaptes
Species
auratus
Regional

This bird has been reportedly found in the following regions:

Fairhope, Alabama

Anthem, Arizona

Mesa, Arizona

Prescott Valley, Arizona

Logan Lake, British Columbia

Amesti, California

Big Sur, California

Brisbane, California

Canoga Park, California

Corralitos, California

Elkhorn, California

Interlaken, California

Klamath River, California

Modesto, California

Mount Laguna, California

Pajaro, California

Vacaville, California

Watsonville, California

Aurora, Colorado

Denver, Colorado

Milford, Connecticut

Beverly Hills, Florida

Englewood, Florida

Byron, Georgia

Montpelier, Idaho

Algonquin, Illinois

Cherry Valley, Illinois

Lexington, Illinois

Quincy, Illinois

Westchester, Illinois

Carmel, Indiana

Coatesville, Indiana

Patriot, Indiana

Yale, Iowa

Hebron, Kentucky

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

West Monroe, Louisiana

Spencer, Massachusetts

Chesaning, Michigan

Constantine, Michigan

Detroit, Michigan

Traverse City, Michigan

Saint Paul, Minnesota

Sandstone, Minnesota

Brunswick, Missouri

Cole Camp, Missouri

Conway, Missouri

Gerald, Missouri

Osage Beach, Missouri

Saint Louis, Missouri

Lincoln, Nebraska

Sunapee, New Hampshire

Beachwood, New Jersey

Clark, New Jersey

Toms River, New Jersey

Woodstown, New Jersey

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Elephant Butte, New Mexico

Coram, New York

Rochester, New York

Cary, North Carolina

Columbus, Ohio

Corning, Ohio

Fremont, Ohio

Geneva, Ohio

North Ridgeville, Ohio

Cheshire, Oregon

Gladstone, Oregon

Troutdale, Oregon

Wood Village, Oregon

Austin, Texas

Baytown, Texas

Fort Worth, Texas

Magnolia, Texas

San Antonio, Texas

Magna, Utah

South Pomfret, Vermont

Bastian, Virginia

Newport, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Roanoke, Virginia

Timberville, Virginia

Arlington, Washington

Arlington Heights, Washington

Enumclaw, Washington

Joyce, Washington

Oso, Washington

Seattle, Washington

Shelton, Washington

Skokomish, Washington

Smokey Point, Washington

Spokane, Washington

Vancouver, Washington

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Gardener's Notes:
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21 positives 4 neutrals 0 negative
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J

Jacquedbogh

Arlington, WA | July 2020 | Positive
I feed these beautiful birds suet pellets and have seen as many as six at a time at or near the feeders in my back yard. I live just west of I-5, 12 miles north of Everett, WA.
l

luella10

Modesto, CA | July 2020 | Neutral
I was a teacher in a country school where birds were plentiful. One spring day, while the students were taking their state standardized test, we heard chirping. It turned out that a northern flicker had pecked a hole in the wall of the portable building that was my classroom and had created a nest in the attic. I quickly explained what we were hearing, and urged the students to continue taking their timed test. They complied and took the test to the sounds of baby birds.
T

TReeser

Mesa, AZ | November 2019 | Neutral
I live in Mesa AZ and regularly see a pair of Flickers at my hummingbird feeder. Because of their weight they spill solution they lick at it as do other small birds. I've never seen this before.
D

Dannyboytoo

Bloomington, IL | March 2019 | Positive
This gorgeous bird, and mate visited our suet feeder today! They were here about the same time last year. Lexington, Illinois
a

aguy1947

Portugal Cove-St. Philip's, NL (Zone 5a) | November 2018 | Neutral
Seen early morning and around dusk here in SE Newfoundland, Canada. Very shy bird, thus difficult to get a picture. Zone 5a. Our house is 'in the country' near spruce/fir forest with some deciduous trees. Ruffed grouse, juncos, crows, chick-a-dees are regular visitors too.
m

mom2boxers

Bastian, VA | March 2016 | Positive
I saw a Northern Flicker in my front yard this morning digging under a bush in the mulch. I was stunned by it's triangular red patch behind its head and the pretty black and white markings on its back. I had to look it up and identify it. So, after googling I found it here too. I live in the VA mountains close to the WV border. Quite a find for me.
C

CAndersen

| November 2014 | Positive
Sleek smooth looking bird, when it takes off you see a red flash on it's wings. Eats the Hackberries in our back yard and visits the bird bath.
d

dwelpgarden

Beverly Hills, FL | March 2013 | Positive
H

HeidiKHandmade

Vancouver, WA | March 2013 | Positive
I have seen both the yellow and red varieties of this bird in my town. It's amazing to watch them fly!
w

weedsfree

Magna, UT (Zone 7a) | February 2013 | Positive
I just saw this one for the first time. It landed on the wood fence next to my bedroom window, which I was looking out of at the time he came to visit. I did some research on it and it is a very good thing we have a ground foraging woodpecker in our neighborhood now. It also said that this woodpecker is the most common and identifiable of the woodpeckers here. I have seen the downy woodpecker a few times before I saw this one. It is a pretty large bird as well. I thought it was a juvenile bird since it had the black spots on it's chest.

12/27/2013 My husband saw some of these by our front door a couple of days ago but I barely had a look at them before they flew off. Today, I saw 4 fly around our front door and lilac. It is so cool that we are attracting woodpecker... read more
h

homesteadgirl

middle TN, TN | July 2011 | Positive
Is this bird the same as what some people call a yellow hammered woodpecker? If it is, we have them in Tennessee.
J

Johnny_Va

Richmond, VA | June 2011 | Positive
I have had Northern Flickers nest in my garden trees on a regular basis for years. They seem to prefer dead tree limbs to nest. Rarely have I seen one at any of my feeders. This year there is a tree that is barely alive near the house. It has many dead branches and has given more opportunities to observe them. Rarely have I seen more than one at a time.
g

gardeningfun

Harpersfield, OH (Zone 5a) | June 2011 | Positive
I loved this woodpecker! He is huge, compared to any other bird in my garden. He was making these huge sounds - to hear them go to this link - //www.enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?recnum=BD0427 and click on the listen link in yellow under name. It sounds so cool and is so loud! Some sites say it's making mating calls doing that.
This is the Eastern Flicker ("Yellow-shafted Flickers"). They have a red patch on their nape and yellow under their wings. The male has a black mustache.
They will eat off the ground, looking for ants and beetles. Likes utility poles and lays 6-8 eggs at a time.
They love suet with peanuts or even just peanuts set out on a table or something.
m

muttlover

Marysville, OH (Zone 5b) | April 2011 | Positive
Always a welcome visitor. There are a lot of them in my neighborhood and the first spring I lived here I got quite a shock. Seems they are very territorial and the males announce their territory by banging on loud things. My bed was right up next to the wall with the chimney and I woke to the sound of a machine gun running through the wall. My male had discovered he could make lots of noise banging on the chimney cap.
E

EmilySTT15

Hagerstown, MD | July 2010 | Positive
Such a beautiful bird! I had a pair at my suet feeder almost everyday this past winter through early spring. I particularly loved when they would spread their wings, and you could catch the bright yellow underneath of them and on the under side of the tail feathers.

Peaking my interest, I did a little reading on the Northern Yellow Flicker in Petersons bird guide, and if you can catch a couple during their mating ritual they put on quite a show... almost like a dance! I watched as often as my 2 year old would allow but never got to see the ritual. Maybe next year? We shall see.
m

macncat

Aurora, CO | February 2010 | Positive
Flickers are at my suet feeder several times a day. They seem to be in family groups and they sure love peanuts. Also in spring they pound on the gutters and vents on top of the house.
g

gardenarian

Brisbane, CA | February 2010 | Neutral
I live in the San Francisco bay area and saw a Northern Flicker (Yellow Shafted) yesterday. It had apparently been attacked by a hawk, as it had a large wound on it's shoulder. I tried to get it to bird rescue but it died en route.

I read that it's quite unusual for the Yellow shafted variety to be found in California this time of year. It was very bright yellow under the wings and tail feathers. It was sad to see such a lovely creature die. I'm looking around for more but it difficult to see the colors clearly unless you are very close. I saw two other Northern Flickers in the area (San Bruno Mountain) but couldn't identify them more specifically.
p

pianofritz

Zirconia, NC | February 2010 | Positive
This beautiful bird has been living in a hollow tree about two hundred yards from our home in the mountains of Western North Carolina. The ice storm that came through here a couple of weeks ago caused so much damage to the trees on our 2.6 acres that I'm not sure his home survived. I'm hoping that he (or she) made it and will come back to the feeding platform right outside our den window. I sit at a card table right next to the windows and when there is a lot of feeding activity going on I set up my camera on a tripod with a remote shutter control. It's the only way I can get decent pictures without frightening them away. This flicker is nuts about the peanuts and doesn't eat anything else. Flies in and checks and if there are no nuts he leaves.
B

BarbaraRose

Portland, OR | February 2010 | Positive
They are beautiful, larger birds. I have four or five that come to my suet feeder. They tend to be a little aggressive toward each other as to the pecking order for the suet - but are a joy to watch and never bother the other birds.
v

violap

Fremont, OH (Zone 5b) | November 2009 | Positive
Found an injured one below my grapevines.
Very pretty with colorful wing markings.Took it to "Back to the Wild "for help.
R

REBLOOMER

Cary, NC (Zone 7b) | February 2009 | Positive
The first time I heard this woodpecker, I thought it was some kind of jungle bird. A pair tend to inhabit my backyard, mainly in the dead trees we have. The female did land on my suet feeder on the deck during the snow fall, which surprised me. A large but beautiful bird.
p

plantgnome

Coram, NY | January 2009 | Positive
beautiful markings on this bird . that loud noise prior to their arrival then landing on the suet calls my attention to the window. it also loves picking thru the grass in the summer. One of my favorites.
n

nanny_56

Putnam County, IN (Zone 5b) | January 2009 | Positive
One of my favorite birds! They come to the yard frequently but not on a regular basis.

We have the yellow-shafted here in Indiana. They are here year round, although you may not see them much during the winter. Come spring though, there is no mistaking all their loud mating calls!
a

angele

| January 2009 | Positive
I love these colorful visitors to my yard. They mostly visit to get a drink and seem to be one of the more wary birds. Hard to get a photo before they fly away.
d

dahlianut

Calgary, AB (Zone 3a) | December 2008 | Positive
The Red-shafted Flicker has been sited in my garden August/September. They feed from open feeders and take dust baths in containers.
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