Hi Barbara and Tweeters,

The Red-shafted Flicker is found from coastal British Columbia to
Mexico. It mingles with the Yellow-shafted subspecies in a narrow
strip that extends from southeastern Alaska along the eastern edge of
the Rocky Mountains to northern Texas, creating the occasional hybrid.
Many of the northern populations of Northern Flickers, including some
of the hybrids, migrate south in winter.

Many of these hybrids arrive in Puget Sound area yards. It is likely that
quite a few of our wintering flickers are coming from an intergrade area in
BC and the Yukon. These often sport the yellow feathers underneath the wings
and tail like the eastern subspecies, others have its black malar
(mustache), while still others display the red crescent on the nape.
Many possess more than one of these features.

It certainly is fun to see these fascinating birds.

Paul

On Tue, Jan 27, 2009 at 12:57 PM, Barbara Miller <bmill07 at comcast.net> wrote:
> I think I have a relative of this bird visiting my feeder?bright yellow
> under the tail, no red at all on the head. In the past 5 years or so I have
> taken photographs of a number of flickers that cross the yellow- and red-
> shafted versions in various ways (half black moustache, etc.). Since my
> neighborhood must be within a mile or so of yours as you describe it, my
> guess is that we've had in infusion of yellow-shafted genes in our local
> flicker population for a while now.
>
>
>
> Barbara Miller
>
> Bellevue, WA
>
>
>
> From: Megan Lyden [mailto:meganlyden at msn.com]
> Sent: Monday, January 26, 2009 3:03 PM
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: [Tweeters] Intergrade Flicker in Bellevue
>
>
>
>
>
> Hi Tweeters,
>
>
>
> I have a intergrade Northern Flicker visiting my suet feeder. Gray face,
> red malar, red nape crescent, and bright yellow under the wings and tail.
> Lake Hills neighborhood, near Crossroads, in Bellevue.
>
>
>
> Megan Lyden
>
> Bellevue, Washington
>
> _______________________________________________
> Tweeters mailing list
> Tweeters at u.washington.edu
> http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters
>
>



--
Paul L. Bannick
Nature and Bird Photography
www.paulbannick.com
206-352-1940

My first book, "The Owl and the Woodpecker: Encounters with North
America's Most Iconic Birds" is now shipping!

For sample pages, book event dates and more information, see:
http://www.paulbannick.com