Abby Jaworski in Oregon City has this female Yellow-shafted variety of Northern Flicker coming to her feeder. The first three photos were taken by Abby's husband. The last one I cropped and lightened.
Pretty cool since we normally get Red-shafted here or occasionally a hybrid. I've not seen a yellow-shafted since I left the midwest, although I'm told they are sometimes seen east of the Cascades.
Since these photos were posted, the experts on OBOL (Oregon Birders On LIne) told us that maybe 1% of the wintering Northern Flickers west of the Cascades are pure Yellow-shafted. They are pretty site specific, like most wintering birds... that is, they return each year to the same sites, which may be why I've never seen one. None has picked my farm yet. Thanks to Abby for sharing!
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