Woodpeckers & Flickers

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)

The Northern Flicker is a large (11-12.2 inch) brown colored woodpecker with scalloped black plumage. The undersides of their wings are brightly colored red here in the west and yellow in the east. They spend a lot of time on the ground hunting ants and beetles, their primary foods, which is unusual for a woodpecker. It will dig in the dirt to find ants and then use its long, barbed tongue to lap them up. When they are not on the ground, you can find them perched upright on horizontal branches.

Fun facts: Like most woodpeckers Northern Flickers will drum on objects as a form of communication. Their preferred material is metal as it creates a louder noise. Unlike most North American woodpeckers, the Northern Flicker is very migratory and will head south in winter.

Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus)

The Hairy Woodpecker looks a lot like the Downy Woodpecker but when compared, is larger than the Downy. It also has a much longer bill. It is a contrasting black and white with the males having a bright red spot on the back of the head. They can be found in mature forests across the continent with some distinctive differences in appearance in each range. They can mainly be found on tree trunks and main branches searching for insects.

Fun facts: Hairy and Downy woodpeckers occur together throughout most of their ranges. Although the Downy Woodpecker prefers smaller branches while the Hairy Woodpecker tends to spend more time on trunks. The Hairy Woodpecker can also be found following the Pileated Woodpecker, searching its deep holes for any insects it might have missed.

Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)

The Downy Woodpecker is a smaller active bird that likes to join in with flocks of nuthatches and chickadees. They are acrobatic foragers that can be found balancing on slender branches allowing them to reach areas that larger birds cannot reach. They prefer open woodlands particularly among deciduous trees and around the edges of brush.

Fun facts: In winter, male and female Downy Woodpeckers split up to collect food. Males tend to stick to smaller branches while females can be found on trunks and larger main branches. The smaller branches are more productive and studies have shown if males are not present, females will forage on the smaller branches instead.