Here, I describe the consumption of clay soils from an expansive clay bank in north-central British Columbia, Canada by a
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus L.
She turned to her husband, but he was already gone, scrambling through the trees to catch a glimpse of a
Northern Flicker that had just alighted in a nearby tree.
In a study in Ohio, Ingold (1994) found that starlings usurped 39 percent of Red-bellied Woodpecker cavities, 14 percent of
Northern Flicker {Colaptes auratus) cavities and 15 percent of Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) cavities.
However, common species were generally the same for each study, including mountain chickadee, pygmy and white-breasted nuthatch, dark-eyed junco, western bluebird, hairy woodpecker,
northern flicker, and Steller's jay.
Among nonpasserines, Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers were abundant at all three sites; whereas, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Chimney Swift,
Northern Flicker, and Hairy Woodpecker were abundant at Bohm Woods (Table 5).
The selected birds range from the
Northern Flicker and the Great-Horned Owl, to the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Red-Cockaded Woodpecker, and the Northern Spotted Owl.
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus): Infrequent feeder visitor, has yellow under wings and red splotch on nape.
Further examination and comparisons using museum specimens resulted in a total of six identifications: Anatidae, eagle (Aquila or Haliaeetus), gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus), white-tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucurus), short-eared owl (Asio flammeus), and
northern flicker (Colaptes auratus luteus).
Once a cavity entrance is enlarged, however, larger secondary cavity users, such as the American kestrel, eastern screech-owl,
northern flicker, fox squirrel, raccoon, and wood duck, are able to use the cavity (Table 1).
