6 replies to this topic

[judym55555]

Don't have a picture. This bird has shown up twice this winter on a small feeder in a Gresham, Oregon backyard. It is large (8 or more inches), mainly dark brown or some dark color. Has a black tail with white speckles on top at the point the tail joins the body. Tail and wings are orange underneath. Has a lighter colored breast with a VERY distinctive half moon shaped black "dickie" at it's throat. Bill is long and light colored, looks almost like a woodpecker type bill. It clung to the rim of the feeder and used it's tail to push against the bottom of the feeder. Leaned over the top to get to the seed. Can anyone give me a guess? None of the results on the website identifier looks like this bird.

[ant_anks]

Sounds like a northern flicker.

[BarnSwallow]

Agree with northern flicker - that's a pretty accurate description of it!

[BigOly]

" Has a lighter colored breast with a VERY distinctive half moon shaped black "dickie" at it's throat. "

Great description of a Northern Flicker.

[cestma]

" Has a lighter colored breast with a VERY distinctive half moon shaped black "dickie" at it's throat. "

Great description of a Northern Flicker.

Absolutely!

[psweet]

And the bill is exactly like a woodpecker's bill -- Northern Flickers are a type of Woodpecker.

[judym55555]

Cool! I looked up some video, and it was a female red-shafted Northern Flicker. Now that I know what it sounds like I have been hearing it since last winter. THANK YOU so much for the help! Also realized that this is the bird I saw last spring at a house on the shore of Lake Sammamish in the Seattle area (Bellevue). Mystery solved.