Northern Flicker in evening sun - Digital Paint II

by Debbie Portwood

Title

Northern Flicker in evening sun - Digital Paint II

Artist

Debbie Portwood

Medium

Photograph - Digital Art - Photography

Description

This beautiful Northern Flicker visited my feeder in mid December while we had a deep blanked to snow that was still covering the ground after almost a week. This is a view of him as he catches the warmth of the late evening sun. I hope to see him again this winter, but I do realize that their feeding habit is on the ground. I love the way he has his beautiful spotted feathers all ruffled out. This version has been given a more colorful and textured digital paint effect for more artistic appeal. Wonderful for any wall in your home or office, or perhaps a greeting card. Many more wonderful works can be found in my various galleries, from photographs and photoart to digital creations and abstracts. Thanks for browsing, commenting and most of all for any purchases. Debbie Portwood :D..............................Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. On walks, don�t be surprised if you scare one up from the ground. It�s not where you�d expect to find a woodpecker, but flickers eat mainly ants and beetles, digging for them with their unusual, slightly curved bill. When they fly you�ll see a flash of color in the wings � yellow if you�re in the East, red if you�re in the West � and a bright white flash on the rump��.Although it can climb up the trunks of trees and hammer on wood like other woodpeckers, the Northern Flicker prefers to find food on the ground. Ants are its main food, and the flicker digs in the dirt to find them. It uses its long barbed tongue to lap up the ants���..The red-shafted and yellow-shafted forms of the Northern Flicker formerly were considered different species. The two forms hybridize extensively in a wide zone from Alaska to the panhandle of Texas. A hybrid often has some traits from each of the two forms and some traits that are intermediate between them. The Red-shafted Flicker also hybridizes with the Gilded Flicker, but less frequently���.The Northern Flicker is one of the few North American woodpeckers that is strongly migratory. Flickers in the northern parts of their range move south for the winter, although a few individuals often stay rather far north���..Northern Flickers generally nest in holes in trees like other woodpeckers. Occasionally, they�ve been found nesting in old, earthen burrows vacated by Belted Kingfishers or Bank Swallows���..Like most woodpeckers, Northern Flickers drum on objects as a form of communication and territory defense. In such cases, the object is to make as loud a noise as possible, and that�s why woodpeckers sometimes drum on metal objects. One Northern Flicker in Wyoming could be heard drumming on an abandoned tractor from a half-mile away���..The oldest known �yellow-shafted� Northern Flicker lived to be at least 9 years 2 months old, and the oldest �red-shafted� Northern Flicker lived to be at least 8 years 9 months old. Find more great information on this and all other birds as well at - www.allaboutbirds.org

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December 15th, 2013

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