Northern Flicker
Colaptes auratus
It sounded like a handsaw drawn back and forth across a board, only louder. Curious, I left the trout creek where I was fishing to find out what was making the strange noise. At the edge of the woods I located a weathered larch snag, where two young northern flickers were noisily calling from the entrance of their nest cavity.
IDENTIFICATION
The northern flicker is a common woodpecker and year-round
Montana resident. The off-white belly has dark spots, and a black
crescent marks the chest. A flying flicker can be easily identified
by its flashing white rump. Vivid colors beneath the wings and tail readily
identify it as either the red-shafted (western) or yellow-shafted
(eastern) subspecies. The yellow-shafted has a brown rather than a gray
face and a red crescent on the neck nape. Males are distinguished from
females by their red (red-shafted subspecies) or black (yellow-shafted
subspecies) “mustache” stripe. Flickers are 12 to 13 inches long.
RANGE
Flickers live in open woodland habitats that include urban and suburban
neighborhoods. According to Dan Casey, Northern Rockies coordinator
for the American Bird Conservancy in Kalispell, the red-shafted subspecies
appears across most of Montana. Yellow-shafted flickers can occur anywhere
in the state but are more common in the east. The subspecies often
interbreed.
HABITS
Unlike most woodpeckers, which use trees, the northern flicker forages
primarily on the ground, using its long, slightly down-curved bill
to probe for ants. The long tongue, extending 1.6 inches beyond the end of
the bill, is covered with sticky saliva that collects ants scurrying aboveground
or in subterranean tunnels. Biologist have found more than 2,000 ants in
the stomachs of some flickers. During fall and winter, the birds add seeds
and berries to their diet.
COURTSHIP AND NESTING
Courtship begins in late March or early April, when
the males establish territories by drumming on trees and other resonating
surfaces—including, much to the annoyance of homeowners, house siding
and roof flashing. The “wika” mating dance, named for the bird’s call,
involves an animated choreography of head swaying and tail flaring.
Flickers nest along forest edges. They usually choose snags with decaying heartwood, but also use utility poles, fence posts, and wooden buildings. For roughly two weeks, both sexes excavate the nest cavity to a depth of 12 to 16 inches. The northern flicker is the most prolific egg layer in the woodpecker family. In an experiment where scientists removed eggs as they were deposited, one flicker laid 71 eggs over a period of 73 days. In natural settings, females lay six or seven eggs.
FAMILY LIFE
Both parents share incubation duties during the 11 to 12 days
it takes for the eggs to hatch. The parents feed their chicks regurgitated
ants over the next 23 days. As the young grow bigger, they also grow
louder and more demanding. At three weeks, the hatchlings clamor from the
entrance of the nest cavity, each trying to be first in line for food. The
loud buzzing can resemble the hum of a beehive; some scientists believe this
noise discourages predators. By late June or early July, the birds fledge,
but they still remain close to their parents for another few weeks.
ECOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS
Northern flickers play an important role in forest
environments by providing nesting cavities for species incapable of
excavating their own. Buffleheads, American kestrels, and several owl
species use old flicker nests. In some parts of the United States,
European starlings pose a major threat to flicker populations. This
invasive species takes over flicker nests and destroys eggs. Casey says
northern flicker populations in Montana appear stable.
Writer Ellen Horowitz lives in Columbia Falls.
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