Hi Everybody,

I am offering the following information in order to make observers aware of
a little-known issue capable of confounding straightforward flicker
identification. A flicker showing red in the wings and tail may be a
Red-shafted Flicker, but it is not necessarily a Red-shafted. Most birders
have not handled flickers in the hand in the east and it is entirely
forgiveable that they are unaware of how frequent flickers with varying
amounts of red in their wings and tails are in our region. The most popular
field guides say nothing useful about this phenomenon. Most of these
partially "red-shafted" flickers only show a few stray primaries,
secondaries or tail feathers with red or orange, but a few can have
extensively red flight feathers. It seems these "red-shafted" Yellow-shafted
Flickers are not definitely hybrids. None of the ones I have banded have
ever shown any of the distinctive head pattern shown by true Red-shafted
Flickers. Red-shafted Flickers have a gray face and at least some brown on
the crown and nape (males also have a red moustache), whereas Yellow-shafted
Flickers show the reverse pattern (and males have a black moustache). I have
handled hybrid specimens from the Great Plains in museums and they always
show considerable mixed gray and brown on the crown and face. Males often
have cinnamon colored moustaches. If an observer does not see or describe
the head pattern it can't be proved that a Red-shafted Flicker, a hybrid, or
a "red-shafted" Yellow-shafted Flicker was seen. I hope someone sees the
bird at the Blue Mash Trail again or describes its head pattern so we can
figure out who it really is.

Good Birding,

Walter Ellison

23460 Clarissa Road
Chestertown, MD 21620
phone: 410-778-9568
e-mail: 

"A person who is looking for something doesn't travel very fast" - E. B.
White (in "Stuart Little")

"Are there *ever* enough birds?" - Connie Hagar as quoted by Edwin Way Teale
in "Wandering through Winter"

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jack Saba" <>
To: <>
Sent: Sunday, October 02, 2005 1:07 PM
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Red-Shafted Flicker at Blue Mash


> While birding Blue Mash Nature Trail this morning (my first visit), I
> got a brief look at a RED-SHAFTED FLICKER, presumably the same bird
> reported yesterday by Tom Marko. I was on the trail at the first pond
> from the Zion Rd parking area. The bird was flying north. The red flash
> from the underwings was clearly visible through binoculars for two
> beats before the bird disappeared behind the tree line. Hard to judge
> how long I had the binoculars on it, but probably not more than 1-2
> seconds.