Red Shafted Flicker~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS, Wild Life

The Northern Flicker is a type of woodpecker.

In the western US, Flickers have red cheeks and tail feathers, but in the east they have yellow accents.

This guy was so relaxed around me, he started snoozing while I was photographing him,

and then hopped over for a closer look!

I photographed him in The San Bernardino Mountains, near Big Bear Lake California.


These photos were taken before the region was hit with five major storms, leaving several feet of snow and alleviating the drought.

Cheers To you from snowy & birdie, Southern California~

254 thoughts on “Red Shafted Flicker~”

  8. As always your photography is stunning. What a handsome fellow he is. And of course I am happy to see some of that beautiful scenery ala Big Bear. Thank you for sharing.

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    1. I cannot believe all the places you have lived. I would love to read a book about your life. Maybe we ran into each other in Big Bear. I used to go as a kid to ski and remember they often had St. Bernard puppy litters there to play with. Pure heaven!

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  12. What a beautiful bird he is! Flickers are always shy around here, but I hear them in the summer more than I see them.
    I’d heard about the tons of snow they are getting in the mountains – some places had 10 feet – omg! 😮

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      1. Cracking up…..We do live in a wonderful world for reflection, meditation….. and medication, when things aren’t going so well!!! Hugs and thanks so much for making me laugh Rebecca <3

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  30. Flickers like these occasionally drop in at my place and check out the suet hanging from the clothesline. They are very smart looking. I love those spots, and the orange under-wings. Your great photos let me appreciate them better than my real life sightings.

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    1. You are very kind & most appreciated! Thank you. I take all bird photos with my Sony HX400. It has a 1200mm adjustable lens which allows me to zoom right in with no tripod.

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      1. You are welcome Cindy. It is only fair to compliment good art and seek to learn the secret in the ‘recipe’. I realize Sony have an edge over their competitor models because of the Carl-Zeiss lens technology. There is a certain crispness of picture that brings images to life in a way few other do. I use a Nikon D3400 and B500.

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        1. Also, wonderful cameras. I am basically a Sony person at this point. My other camera is the new, very fast RXII. I am worried that Sony seems to have stopped further productions of the HX series and doesn’t seem to be coming out with a HX500, which is very disappointing. The camera is rather fragile, which could be the reason, but it’s zoom and stability are awesome.

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          1. I would want to believe that part of the challenges with production in the camera industry is raw competition from cellphone cameras. The mobile phone companies are literally trying to pack the power of a regular standard camera into the palm of your hand in a cellphone. Tough business out there. They now even have mounted clip zoom lenses.

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  37. Breathtaking scenery, Cindy and beautifully captured by you! As for the Flicker, it’s as if you’re best of pals and it’s happy to pose for you at great length! Wonderful colouring and patterns. Happy Weekend and thank you for sharing a snippet of your travels with us … a lovely start to my Saturday. Xx

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    1. I have wanted to get decent photos of this bird for a long time, but they were just too shy, so I was amazed when this handsome guy let me take so many, so close. Thank you for your very kind thoughts Annika <3 🐦

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  42. I did not know that wood peckers have cousin that is good looking. I am wondering the red shifted flicker do have the same habit as the wood pecker or not. I like red shifted flicker color tone of its feathers better. The black dots on the brown look great.

    Those are gorgeous scenery pictures!

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  54. I love those birds. Their calls are like some wild tropical thing. The coloring differences east to west are very interesting. Our flickers have the little red patch on the head but dark cheeks and the yellow accents. In the south, they’re called yellowhammers for that coloration and their drumming, I guess.

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  55. That is one gorgeous bird. I’m taken with the very notion of a bird having cheeks. That the cheeks have a distinct, vivid color on the creature is icing on the… um, cheek. Lovely photos, as always.

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      1. I just called it a woodpecker, but a birder near me corrected me with blah, blah, blah flicker. Obviously, I’m not a good birder, but I enjoy nature nonetheless.

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        1. Actually you are correct. A flicker is a type of woodpecker. I don’t birdwatch in groups because it gets competitive about who knows more. I am like you. I don’t that much about birds and am no expert. I just love them. So we can birdwatch together, unknowing, but enjoying. Much more fun! <3 🕊️

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        1. I know exactly what you mean. It is so good to go other places, because it helps you realize, that where you came from is just as beautiful, in different ways.
          I like it that you know this.

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    1. Yes, the drought is being alleviated. There is storm after storm arriving, which in Southern California means precipitation, either snow or rain. All of this will help.
      The drought is a persistent beast however, and I am not at all sure it has yet been beaten.
      The downside of all the moisture, is that it causes all the grasses, weeds, and bushes to grow, which of course, if the drought remains dominant, which I fear it might, just means more fuel for the fires to come, starting in about September.

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  77. How gorgeous photos. Your bird photos are amazing and landscapes – wow. I noticed the word San Bernardino in Your text. We have been visited to San Bernardino many years ago and it was due to the Song telling about San Bernardino. 🙂 Thank You.

    Have a good day!

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    1. Thank you for your thoughtfulness. It is much appreciated. I think you are referring to this song by the Christies:
      “I’ve been all around this great big world
      to Paris and Rome
      And I’ve never found a place that I could
      really call my own.
      But there’s one place where I know
      the sun is shining endlessly
      And it’s calling me across the sea
      so I must get back to SAN BERNADINO.”
      The San Bernardino Mountain range is surrounded by other ranges, many of which are still quite wild, and beautiful, and high.

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      1. That is the Song. Many years ago, we made a road trip visiting, San Francisco, Muir Woods, Yosemite, Las Vegas, Hollywood, Las Angeles and many places between them. So, song made us to visit San Bernardino. Isn’t very cool.

        Also, we cried when we heard in San Francisco the song: San Francisco by Scott McKenzie..

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  78. I love how you can get close up to the birds. We are under freezing rain at the moment.
    I took some photos of wrens up close on the other side of my picture window – but they aren’t in my PC yet. I need a better camera!

    Anyway I do have some friends from FL – I’ll send them to you via an email 🙂

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  82. What beautiful photos you take. Somehow, God has given me an increased love for birds over the last few years. I think seeing Alfred Hitchcock’s movie, “The Birds” ruined them for me for a while. My roommate in college was terrified of birds. I wonder if she saw that flick. Now, I snap to attention when a bird goes gliding by or I catch one at rest. Then I soak in the beauty of the little darlings. Thanks for showing us your pix.

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    1. Hitchcock’s movie was excellent, but it certainly didn’t advance understanding of bird behavior. I am so glad you appreciate birds more now as reflections of the wonder of God <3

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  85. Hi Cindy, I vastly understated what I think of your photos. They are certainly much more than just pretty pictures. The composition, lighting and clarity are really superb, especially the ones of the Red Flicker. Professional quality. Do you mind if I re-post them on my blog?

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