Gilded flicker

Gilded flicker
Male on top of a cactus
Male on a cactus

Secure  (NatureServe)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Piciformes
Family: Picidae
Genus: Colaptes
Species:
C. chrysoides
Binomial name
Colaptes chrysoides
(Malherbe, 1852)
Range

The gilded flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) is a large woodpecker (mean length of 29 cm (11 in)) of the Sonoran, Yuma, and eastern Colorado Desert regions of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, including all of Baja California, except the extreme northwestern region. Yellow underwings distinguish the gilded flicker from the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus) found within the same region, which has red underwings.

Taxonomy

Four subspecies are recognized:

  • The Cape gilded flicker (C. c. chrysoides) resides in southern Baja California.
  • The brown gilded flicker (C. c. brunnescens) resides in northern and central Baja California.
  • Mearns' gilded flicker (C. c. mearnsi) resides in extreme southeastern California to Arizona and northwestern Mexico.
  • The Mexican gilded flicker (C. c. tenebrosus) resides in northwestern Mexico from northern Sonora to northern Sinaloa.

Habitat

The gilded flicker most frequently builds its nest hole in a saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea), excavating a nest hole nearer to the top than to the ground.[3] Less frequently, they will also nest in desert washes with cottonwood or willow.[4] Cavities in saguaros are excavated a year before they are inhabited. The cactus defends itself against water loss into the cavity of the nesting hole by secreting sap that hardens into a waterproof structure that is known as a saguaro boot.[5] Northern flickers, on the other hand, nest in riparian trees and very rarely inhabit saguaros. Gilded flickers occasionally hybridize with northern flickers in the narrow zones where their ranges and habitats overlap.[6]

Diet

The gilded flicker's diet mostly consists of ants, as well as other insects such as beetles or termites.[6] They forage on the ground by picking up insects or using their tongues to probe anthills.[7] They also feed on fruits and berries.[7]

References

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2016). "Colaptes chrysoides". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22681290A92900551. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22681290A92900551.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Gilded Flicker". National Audubon Society. Archived from the original on 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2011-01-24. Much of the Gilded Flicker's breeding biology needs study. Nesting begins in early April in the United States, and pair bonds appear to last for the breeding season.
  4. ^ "Gilded Flicker Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology". www.allaboutbirds.org. Archived from the original on Sep 26, 2023. Retrieved 2024-02-07.
  5. ^ Mark Elbroch; Eleanor Marie Marks; C. Diane Boretos (2001). Bird tracks and sign. Stackpole Books. p. 311. ISBN 0-8117-2696-7. Cavities in saguaros are cut out by these birds the year before they are inhabited. The excavated cactus secretes a fluid that hardens into a scab, thus preventing water loss, which could kill the cactus, as well as waterproofing the inside of the next cavity.
  6. ^ a b "Gilded Flicker | Audubon Field Guide". www.audubon.org. Archived from the original on Feb 7, 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-07.
  7. ^ a b "Gilded Flicker ⋆ Tucson Audubon". Tucson Audubon. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved 2024-02-07.

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Colaptes chrysoides.

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