Species Profile:Northern Flicker

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Species Profile:Northern Flicker For Preferred BirdTracksthis special Youbecause have edition youreceived are of a A special BirdTracks edition from Fall 2012 preferred WBU customer! PRST STD Customers Only U.S. POSTAGE Frequently Asked Are you enjoying BirdTracks? We’d appreciate your feedback and comments MARIETTA,PAID OH PERMIT NO 161 the next time you visit our store. : Our backyard adjoins a railroad right-of-way that we walk through Qregularly. We recently found a small nest about three feet above ground. It was tightly woven into what seemed to be a plant that was more ® by Kevin Cook ’s weed than shrub. Whose nest could it be? and our partner Q : Exactly what bird it could be depends on where you live, but a few likely widespread species include Yellow Warbler, Field Sparrow, or American Goldfinch. A You can distinguish them by structure and materials. Sparrows use bulky material for the outside but build a more compact structure. Warblers and goldfinches use fine, slender materials and build a very tight, compact structure that usually includes much plant floss from thistles, willows, or cottonwoods. Tracks BIRD by DR. DAVID BIRD Species Profi le: Northern Flicker : Birds seem absolutely determined to drink from my roof gutter instead of the birdbath I bought for them. QHow can I get them to use the birdbath where I can see them? orthern Flickers are one of my favorite birds, if only because they Northern Flicker, : A roof gutter that holds enough water to attract birds in not functioning properly. A gutter that holds wa- areN amazingly easy to identify from a male. ter will deteriorate and can contribute to structural damage from wood rot. distance. eir bottom coloration dotted AJust to prevent costly damage to your house, you need to get the gutter rehung or replaced so that it drains with numerous black bars, the red patch completely and does not hold water. Once you solve the maintenance problem, your bird problem will solve on the back of the head, and especially itself. the large white patch on the rump, make them a distinctive bird indeed! row in that undulating fl ight pattern, so char- : I see Dark-eyed Juncos around my summer residence in Michigan and around my winter residence in New acteristic of the woodpeckers, and the QMexico, and I often wonder if they could be the same birds. Is it possible the juncos migrates the way I do? fl icker’s unwoodpecker-like tendency to : Possible, yes; likely, no. feed on the ground and it becomes hard Banding studies allow us to work out such details. Birds can be uniquely marked so that band numbers, to confuse this species with anything colors,A or positions indicate where the bird was captured and marked. Subsequent sightings or recaptures then else. yield information about how far various birds travel and in what directions Another unique morphological feature Statistically, juncos from the upper Midwest tend to move primarily north-south and remain east of the Great is the bright feather shaft color seen on Plains. If you see Dark-eyed Juncos in the summer, you reside far enough north that you could be in an area the undersurface of the wings. Our fl ick- where the juncos are more sedentary and less likely to migrate at all. ers were once considered to be two sepa- Your winter juncos in New Mexico are far more likely coming from Alaska and northwestern Canada. rate species, the Yellow-shafted Flicker in eastern North America and the Red-shafted Flicker in the West, but the N F— American Ornithologists Union weighed In every issue of BirdTracks Continued from page 5 the evidence and concluded that these N F— Continued from page 1 we feature questions from two morphs—along with three other vis- fl icker box can prevent this behavior and Want to do somethingTIP: to help out our ibly diff erent ones found in Baha, Cuba, of birdbaths to fl ickers. Little is known like many of our songbirds, arrive on you, our best customers. accommodate fl ickers by replacing lost fl ickers? Because snags (dead trees) Grand Cayman, and Guatemala—are about drinking and bathing in this the breeding grounds in early April. We welcome your nesting habitat. e Certifi ed Birdfeeding are highly preferred for nesting and really only one species, the Northern species. A few birds have been seen to e northern populations of fl ickers suggestions, comments Specialists at Wild Birds Unlimited can feeding but in short supply, consider Flicker, with fi ve subspecies. ANN MIDDLETON/WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED drink from natural catch-basins, such as are more migratory than the rather help you attract and accommodate these and questions. We also leaving up the main trunk of that dead away that the bird is a fl icker. Flickers bayberry, gooseberry, sour gum, wild knotholes in trees, but descriptions of sedentary southern ones. fascinating birds. or dying tree you’re planning to have Adaptability bathing behavior are almost nonexistent. In early May both members of a pair, hope to share your tips and Flickers breed in their fi rst spring, and Although fl ickers prefer forest edges, adore eating ants! About half of their pepper berry, woodbine, elder, sun- removed. Convince your local town open, savannah-like woodlands, and re- summer diet is ants. Joining ants at the fl ower, fl owering dogwood, blackberry As for feeders, Northern Flickers will with the male dominating, carve out a ideas for enhancing our at least one individual reached its ninth authorities and local forestry compa- dine on sunfl ower seed and cracked cently fl ooded areas with plenty of snags, top of the menu are predaceous ground and raspberry, smooth sumac, and other nesting hole in about two weeks. At the enjoyment of backyard birthday in the wild. nies to better manage the cutting of corn, but they are not likely to become rate of one per day, the female lays six birds and wildlife with But not all is well with the Northern they are also quite comfortable right in beetles. Because insects are not always sumacs. Although I would not recom- regular guests, mainly because they real- Flicker. Perhaps due to our overzeal- dead trees so that some snags are left your backyard in a town or city. eir available throughout the year, fl ickers mend the fi rst two species, some of to seven semi-glossy white eggs. Fed by for fl ickers and other wildlife species. ly do prefer to eat insects on the ground. both parents, the youngsters fl edge in 24 other BirdTracks readers ous desire to rid the world of dead and selection of trees for feeding, roosting, will shift to fruits and seeds in winter. the other ones listed might be good to High-fat off erings such as suet cakes and to 27 days. all over North America. decaying trees and the associated serious A density of around 90 snags per 250 and nesting is highly variable. Depending on whether we are talking attract fl ickers to your yard. Jim’s Birdacious Bark Butter can prove Depending on the habitat and scarcity competition for nesting holes from the acres would allow fl ickers to reach Whenever I get a phone call describ- about yellow-shafted or red-shafted We’re less certain about the appeal attractive, especially to the red-shafted of suitable nesting trees, fl ickers might Write to us at: ubiquitous European Starlings, fl ickers 100 percent of their potential nesting ing a brownish bird with black spots birds, some of their favorites include Continued on page 5 Northern Flickers in the West. use an artifi cial nesting box. e box’s di- BirdTracks have been declining in numbers since density. Danger to the public has to be feeding on the ground, I know right the fruits of poison ivy and poison oak, Flickers are present year-round mensions should be 16 to 24 inches high, WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED c/o BWD 1966. Where pesticides are heavily used considered, but surely not every snag across most of the continental United with an interior size of 7 by 7 inches; the on lawns to kill insects, including the has to be removed. PO Box 110 Feature News on the Fly Readers’ Questions ....................5 States, and during breeding season entrance hole diameter about 2½ inches. fl icker’s favorite foods, fl ickers feeding Species Profi le: Northern Flicker .........1 Hotspots and Nose Dives ....................3 they expand their range northward Place it up about 10 to 20 feet in a tree in Marietta, OH 45750 at ground level are highly susceptible to into most of Canada and into Alaska any open habitat. Cedar and fake stucco Red-shafted adult male Or send an e-mail to: poisoning and often show up with ner- Birds in Depth e Backyard Watcher as well. You can expect to see fl ickers, siding are susceptible to fl ickers making Northern Flicker. [email protected] vous system tremors in wildlife rehabili- Built Tough as Nails ............................2 Top 10 Countdown to Fall ...................4 BRIAN E. SMALL/ nesting or roosting holes. Mounting a ISTOCKPHOTO.COM tation centers. 5 CONTENTS 1 For Preferred Wild Birds Unlimited Customers For Preferred Wild Birds Unlimited Customers For Preferred Wild Birds Unlimited Customers Birds in Depth News on the Fly e Backyard Watcher by BILL THOMPSON, III Hotspots and Nose Dives Builtby JOHN SCHAUST Tough as Nails by DAVID BIRD BIRD TRIVIA: Tophether you’d like 10to admit it or not,Countdown Let your garden go. It’s hard to resist is food to is intended forFall those skulking n writing about the Downy Emperor Penguins Face the Heat and wetlands con- summer is almost over and autumn the urge to pull up all the dead tomato, species that may be reluctant to come Woodpecker, the famous naturalist Red-headed As global temperatures continue servation.
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