One Of Many

January 13, 2025

A Northern Flicker (yellow shafted phase)(Colaptes auratus). One of an incredible number of birds that have been around for the peanuts, hulled sunflower seeds, and suet during this weeklong snow event. My count of species that have been in attendance is now at eighteen.

Flickers are mainly insect eaters, but during the winter they will also eat small fruits and seeds. When there is no snow on the ground they’ll eat ants and their larvae that they find underground as they pound at the soil, much like other woodpeckers go after insects in trees.

Such fun to have this snow lasting so long.

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Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.