Quote:
Originally Posted by benb
These guys are really confusing.. we have a bunch of birds called "Flickers" which look like this and they are all quite hard to ID unless you have a good guide with you. (Which I almost never do)
Years ago my parents had a major issue with one of these during mating season deciding to "drill" their siding on their house. It was pretty crazy.. sounded like someone was hammering inside the house.
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Flickers are beautiful. In most of North America we just have Red-shafted (western) and Yellow-shafted (eastern)... which are both just variants/races of the species Northern Flicker. The Gilded Flicker is on the baja peninsula and ranges into southern AZ, as well.. but has a limited range.
When I see Northern Flickers from afar, the white "rump" patch is the most obvious indication, but also often the flash of yellow or red in the wings depending on which flicker it is. And they tend to forage on the ground so you'll see them there or flying up from the ground into nearby trees when passing them on bike or in a car.
Woodpeckers are some of my favorite birds. Particularly awesome named species is the Yellow Bellied Sapsucker.