Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker (male)

The Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker, Colaptes auratus auratus, is a timid woodpecker. The subspecies Colaptes auratus auratus is characterized by a red mark on the nape, and males are characterized by a black mark on the cheek. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology describes the Northern Flicker beautifully, "Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. " The call of the Northern Flicker is a repeated ki-ki-ki almost like a laugh.