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Perfect Portrait
Photograph by Michael S. Quinton
As if dabbed with a paintbrush, a male yellow-shafted northern flicker displays his profile on a black spruce in Alaska. These softball-size woodpeckers are common throughout North America, though in some areas they are in decline due to habitat loss and nest competition with European starlings. Flickers are known for their colorful underfeathers: Yellow-shafted flickers live in the East, red-shafted ones in the West, and both can mingle in a hybrid belt that runs from Texas to Alaska. Because they have relatively soft and slim beaks for woodpeckers, they must carve out their homes from pulpy trees. But when flickers forage on the ground, their beaks can superbly pluck scurrying ants—the birds' favorite food.
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Camera: Nikon F4
Film Type: Unrecorded
Lens: 500mm
Speed and F-Stop: 1/500 @ f/4 |
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Weather Conditions: Clear
Time of Day: Midday, when flickers are most active
Lighting Techniques: Natural light |
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