yellow-shafted flicker

Thân thiện

A yellow-shafted flicker pecks at the ground in a sunlit meadow.

Definition

Noun: 1. A large woodpecker of eastern North America: The yellow-shafted flicker is a specific, named species of bird (Colaptes auratus auratus), a type of flicker. It is characterized by distinctive, bright yellow coloring on the undersides of its wing and tail feathers, and a prominent red patch on the back of its neck.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • We spotted a yellow-shafted flicker drilling for insects in the old apple tree.
  • The yellow-shafted flicker is easily identified by the yellow under its wings when it flies.
  • A key field mark for the yellow-shafted flicker is the red crescent on the nape of its neck.

Advanced Usage

• Taxonomic Context: The yellow-shafted flicker is one of the subspecies or color forms of the Northern Flicker (). The term is used precisely in ornithology and birdwatching to distinguish it from its western counterpart, the "red-shafted flicker" (), which has salmon-red wing and tail linings.

Variants and Related Words

• Northern Flicker (n): The common name for the full species (), which includes both the yellow-shafted and red-shafted forms.
• Flicker (n): The general term for birds of the genus , medium-sized woodpeckers known for feeding on the ground.
• Woodpecker (n): The broader family of birds (Picidae) to which the flicker belongs.

Synonyms

• Colaptes auratus auratus (n): The scientific Latin name for this subspecies.
• (Eastern) Northern Flicker (n): A common alternative name, though it can refer to the species as a whole.

Related Idioms or Phrases

• None specific to this bird name. The term "yellow-shafted flicker" is a precise ornithological/common name and is not typically used idiomatically.

Học thuật

Noun

1. large flicker of eastern North America with a red neck and yellow undersurface to wings and tail

Từ đồng nghĩa

• Colaptes auratus
• yellowhammer