Fernandina's Flicker
Colaptes fernandinae
A medium-sized bird of open habitats; often found singly or in pairs feeding on the ground. Its body and tail are largely barred mustard yellow and black. The Northern Flicker is very similar in size and shape, but it has a black crescent across its chest and a spotted belly, and in flight, an obvious white rump unlike Fernandina’s Flicker. Calls include a squeaky sputtering “chee-uh-uh-uh-uh…” and a rhythmic “ka-flick, ka-flick, ka-flick…”
Identification
Fernandina's flicker is a medium-sized woodpecker, ranging in length from 14–15 inches (33–35 cm). Overall, it is mostly yellowish-tan, covered with varying amounts of black barring; its underwings are yellow. The male has a black mustachial stripe, which the female lacks.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Colaptes fernandinae
- Authority
- Vigors, 1827
- Order
- Piciformes
- Family
- Picidae
- Genus
- Colaptes
Range and habitat
Fernandina's flicker is endemic to Cuba. Though it was apparently never common, it was formerly found across the island. Now, however, it is restricted to isolated locations in nine of the country's 15 provinces: Camagüey, Cienfuegos, Granma, Holguín, Las Tunas, Matanzas, Pinar del Río, Santiago de Cuba, and Villa Clara. The largest population is found in Zapata Swamp, where some 120 pairs are estimated to live, though this number may have dropped following recent hurricanes.<p>Fernandina's flicker's natural habitats include dry forests, dry savanna, swamps, and pastures.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Though not a particularly social bird, Fernandina's flicker will sometimes form loose colonies of up to 15 pairs. It regularly fights with other woodpeckers.<p>Like its congeners, Fernandina's flicker often forages—primarily for ants, but also for other insects, worms, grubs and seeds—on the ground. It uses its strong bill to probe the ground and flick aside leaf litter.<p>Fernandina's flicker breeds between March and June; during courtship, pairs regularly engage in high-flying chases. Like all woodpeckers, it is a cavity nester. Recent fieldwork has shown that it prefers to use nest holes started by West Indian woodpeckers (Melanerpes superciliaris); the flicker drives off the original owners, finishes off the excavation work, and moves in. The female lays a clutch of three to five white eggs, which are incubated for a period of about 18 days. The young fledge after 22 days.
Conservation
With an estimated population of only 600–800 birds, Fernandina's flicker is one of the most endangered woodpecker species in the world. Overall, that population is declining, principally because of habitat loss. Farming, logging, hurricane damage and the caged bird trade—trappers bring down whole palm trees in order to capture nestling Cuban amazons (Amazona leucocephala leucocephala)—are combining to squeeze the remaining birds into smaller and smaller isolated tracts. In addition, West Indian woodpeckers have been observed killing the chicks of Fernandina's flickers.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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