{"id":8625,"date":"2013-06-20T03:45:24","date_gmt":"2013-06-20T09:45:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=8625"},"modified":"2025-05-22T10:35:57","modified_gmt":"2025-05-22T15:35:57","slug":"male-northern-flicker-in-its-nesting-cavity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/06\/20\/male-northern-flicker-in-its-nesting-cavity\/","title":{"rendered":"Male Northern Flicker in its nesting cavity"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazyload aligncenter wp-image-123139 size-full\" title=\"Male Northern Flicker in its nest, Wade Lake, Madison County, Montana\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27850%27%20height%3D%27607%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20850%20607%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27850%27%20height%3D%27607%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/northern-flicker-mia-mcpherson-montana-5876.jpg\" alt=\"Male Northern Flicker in its nest, Wade Lake, Madison County, Montana\" width=\"850\" height=\"607\" \/><span style=\"color: #888888;\">Male Northern Flicker in its nest<\/span><\/p>\n<p>I was photographing some Pine Siskins along a road in <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Madison_County,_Montana\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Madison County<\/span><\/a>, Montana when this male Red-shafted Northern Flicker stuck his head out of his nesting cavity in an aspen and surprised me.<\/p>\n<p>The nest was close to Wade Lake.<\/p>\n<p>I haven&#8217;t had much luck photographing this species primarily because I don&#8217;t bait or call birds into view so I was tickled to get a series of this bird as he poked his head out of the nest and a few more when he returned to the nest a while later.<\/p>\n<p>This Quaking Aspen was also being used by Tree Swallows in another cavity below this one.<\/p>\n<p>Life<em> is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n<p>Mia<\/p>\n<p>Click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/northern-flicker-images\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Northern Flicker photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I was photographing some Pine Siskins along a road in Madison County, Montana when this male Red-shafted Northern Flicker stuck his head out of his nesting cavity in an aspen and surprised me. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":145969,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,1512,12,2255],"tags":[4004,1919,2257,3705,4931,5370,4062,4075,473,2580,2579,3704,6576,7791,4932,4427,102,4777,2146],"class_list":["post-8625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-madison-county-montana","category-montana","category-northern-flicker","tag-adult","tag-aspen","tag-colaptes-auratus","tag-flicker","tag-flickers","tag-forest","tag-male","tag-nest","tag-nesting-behavior-2","tag-nesting-cavity","tag-nesting-tree","tag-northern-flicker","tag-populus-tremuloides","tag-quaking-aspen","tag-red-shafted","tag-tree","tag-wildlife","tag-woodpecker","tag-woodpeckers"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-mia-mcpherson-montana-5876.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-2f7","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":39172,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/05\/05\/northern-flicker-nesting-cavity\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":0},"title":"Northern Flicker Nesting Cavity","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 5, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed my favorite nesting tree in the Targhee National Forest and this Northern Flicker nesting cavity.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Northern Flicker male at nest, Targhee National Forest, Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nest-mia-mcpherson-8290.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nest-mia-mcpherson-8290.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nest-mia-mcpherson-8290.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nest-mia-mcpherson-8290.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51359,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/03\/23\/photographing-a-male-northern-flicker-excavating-a-nesting-cavity\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":1},"title":"Photographing a Male Northern Flicker Excavating a Nesting Cavity","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 23, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"I dug into my archives and picked these Northern Flicker photos from May of 2015 to share today because I saw a Northern Flicker yesterday and thought of how they will soon start excavating their nesting cavities to rear their young in.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Northern Flicker male outside his nesting cavity, Targhee National Forest, Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-nesting-cavity-male-mia-mcpherson-8132.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-nesting-cavity-male-mia-mcpherson-8132.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-nesting-cavity-male-mia-mcpherson-8132.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-nesting-cavity-male-mia-mcpherson-8132.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23241,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2015\/05\/05\/a-flicker-letting-the-chips-fall-where-they-may\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":2},"title":"Northern Flicker Letting The Chips Fall Where They May","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 5, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I could hear the Northern Flicker excavating inside the nesting cavity and when he would stop he would appear with a bill full of shavings and forcefully eject them from the cavity.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Close up of a male Northern Flicker and aspen nesting tree in the Targhee National Forest of Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-tree-mia-mcpherson-8145.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-tree-mia-mcpherson-8145.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-tree-mia-mcpherson-8145.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-tree-mia-mcpherson-8145.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":102141,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/05\/04\/male-northern-flicker-images\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":3},"title":"Male Northern Flicker Images","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning I am sharing a few male Northern Flicker images that I took seven years ago at the edge of a mountain forest in the Targhee National Forest in Idaho.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Northern Flicker peeking out of his nesting cavity, Targhee National Forest, Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-cavity-mia-mcpherson-8575.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-cavity-mia-mcpherson-8575.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-cavity-mia-mcpherson-8575.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-cavity-mia-mcpherson-8575.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":69273,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/05\/01\/nesting-northern-flickers-provide-nests-for-other-birds\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":4},"title":"Nesting Northern Flickers Provide Nests For Other Birds","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 1, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"By excavating their own nests Northern Flickers provide nests for other woodland birds that can't excavate nesting cavities on their own and those nests can be used over and over again. Nature is brilliant.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Northern Flicker perched outside of his nest, Targhee National Forest, Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-forest-mia-mcpherson-8171.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-forest-mia-mcpherson-8171.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-forest-mia-mcpherson-8171.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/northern-flicker-male-nesting-forest-mia-mcpherson-8171.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46558,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/05\/03\/sapsuckers-bluebirds-and-nuthatches-and-the-magical-sapsucker-tree\/","url_meta":{"origin":8625,"position":5},"title":"Sapsuckers, Bluebirds and Nuthatches and the Magical Sapsucker Tree","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Two years ago today I was in the Targhee National Forest of Clark County, Idaho photographing birds at what I called the \"Magical Sapsucker Tree\".","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Williamson's Sapsucker on a tree with three nesting cavities showing, Targhee National Forest, Clark County, Idaho","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/williamsons-sapsucker-male-nesting-tree-mia-mcpherson-7075.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/williamsons-sapsucker-male-nesting-tree-mia-mcpherson-7075.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/williamsons-sapsucker-male-nesting-tree-mia-mcpherson-7075.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/145969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}