Northern Flickers (Colaptes auratus) have so many different colorful patterns that they sometimes remind me of patchwork quilts. If I were to be dressed in clothing with dots and stripes and patterns, I probably would look really weird, but somehow the flickers pull it off amazingly well. Compared to other woodpeckers, the flickers are fashion stars.
In addition to the patterns, they also have pops of accent colors, like the red on the back of the head, a black mustache, and bright yellow on the inside of the wings. (If you click on the image to see the details, you get a tiny glimpse of that bright yellow on the edge of the lower wing.)
I spotted this handsome male—females do not have the black mustaches—during a recent visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Believe it or not, I don’t spend all of my time observing the bald eagles at the refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Beautiful bird. Were is the groundhog
Alas, I don’t see groundhogs very often. Here is a link to one that I saw last year. Happy Groundhog Day! https://michaelqpowell.com/2020/03/14/groundhog-day/
Good thing the females don’t have black mustaches! No gender confusion here! 👍
Blue Rock Horses Frederick County, Virginia bluerockhorses.com
🙂 The only confusion is that the mustaches are black on the males in the East and red on males in the West.
Hahaha! Oh no!
what a beautiful bird..Is it only in your area?
They are found throughout most of the United States, with some differences in coloration between those in the west and in the east.
Very nice Mike Ben though it is not an Eagle!😊
Should be “even” though!
🙂
Yes, indeed it is a beautiful bird.
Lovely capture of the variety of feathers.
There are a lot of bird species there in that nature reserve. Do have the impression that most of them do not occur here with us. Nevertheless, it is interesting to be able to view them all and read about them. Have a nice afternoon, Mike.
I adore this lovely little bird. I wish I could see one for real.
They are definitely cool looking, but I think you would have to come to my side of the Atlantic to see one. 🙂
One day maybe lol.
We’re lucky to have Flickers breed in several nearby areas. One of my all-time favorite birds!
Terrific photograph, Mike!
Thanks, Wally.