I was inside the house the other day, walking by the back window, when I heard the unmistakable cry of a Northern Flicker. I glanced out just in time to see him land on a limb in the backyard post oak tree. I thought for sure he would fly away if I tried to sneak out with my camera, but much to my surprise (and delight!) he stayed put while I made my way out to the deck. Picture me moving in ultra slow motion!

This fellow was calling LOUDLY!

He would let out a full-volume cry and then wait a few seconds and cry out again.

Before long, a lovely female answered his call and swooped in to join him. I had the camera focused on him, but you can see her in the blurry image at the edge of the photo below.

He didn’t stay long before flying down to the trunk of a different tree, still calling out loudly…

…and then he made his way to the ground for a brief, but boisterous dust bath.
By the way, you can tell the male from the female because he has the black mustache mark and she does not.

She soon followed him, and while he hunted for ants (which is a favorite fare of these oddly beautiful birds)…

…she gave herself a luxurious, leisurely dusting.

And just when I thought she was finished, she started right back up for another round!

That last picture of her dust bathing gives you a glimpse of the lemony feathers beneath her wings and shows why these Flickers are called Yellow-shafted Northern Flickers.

They honestly stayed for quite awhile, then, just before they flew off, he crept down into the upper part of the fountain and got several sips of water.

I rarely have Flickers in the backyard (though they often taunt me by calling out from the back woods) so their arrival has been long awaited and much hoped for!

And just to let you know, the whole time they were here I was silently sending them telepathic messages (think Aquaman with the sea creatures!) begging them to make my backyard their new favorite place to hang out!