Description:
Northern Flickers are large woodpeckers that forage mainly on the ground, feeding on ants.
Northern Flickers have two subspecies: the Red-shafted Flicker (C. a. cafer) of western North America and the Yellow-shafted Flicker (C. a. auratus) of the east and far north.
This is the red-shafted (western) subspecies.
The difference with the yellow-shafted (eastern) subspecies is the grey (not brown) face and throat and the male's red (not black) malar.
1st, 2nd & 3rd photo: Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park, Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA, 11 January 2019
4th photo: Lake Roberts, Gila National Forest, New Mexico, USA, 12 January 2019
5th photo: Gila National Forest, New Mexico, USA, 12 January 2019