As the autumnal feeder visitors are arriving in full force these days, the Wingscapes BirdCams I have placed around the old homestead have been working full tilt. Most recently, one of the BirdCams alerted me to the arrival of a wintering Townsend’s Warbler, Dendroica townsendi, in the area. However some of the most impressive images recorded in the past few days have by far been those of a Northern Flicker, Colaptes auratus, at one of the suet feeders.
While we do see flickers in the area more or less year ’round, they are particularly regular at the suet feeders during the first round of cold weather we experience every November.
Unlike the Townsend’s Warblers who are seeking the insects drawn to the suet, the flickers are after the rendered fat itself to help build up their own fat reserves.
Peace and good bird watching.
