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Photo: Glenn Seplak from Tucson, Arizona / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

Least Concern

Gilded Flicker

Colaptes chrysoides

Gilded Flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) — Woodpeckers & Toucans of North America.

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The Gilded Flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) is a member of the Picidae family found in Central America & Caribbean and North America. Adults weigh 111 g. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

LC Least Concern

Widespread and abundant — not currently at risk.

Where it fits

  1. Class Aves
  2. Order Piciformes
  3. Family Picidae Woodpeckers
  4. Genus Colaptes
  5. Species chrysoides

Where it lives

Southwestern USA and northwestern Mexico

Quick facts

Weight
111 g
Family
Picidae
Order
Piciformes
Habitat
Woodland

How to identify

Similar birds

Biology & behaviour

Diet

The Gilded Flicker is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.

Behaviour

A bird of semi-open scrub and shrubland, it forages mainly on the ground.

Migration

The Gilded Flicker is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.

The Gilded Flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) is a member of the Picidae family, within the order Piciformes. It is found across Central America & Caribbean and North America. Its distribution covers NA, MA sw USA and nw Mexico.

It is a medium-sized bird. Adults weighs around 111 g, with a wing length of about 13.8 cm and a tail of around 9.4 cm.

The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern. That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.

Its mapped global range covers an estimated 378,000 km².

Songs & calls

Gilded Flicker — Call, song

Recorded by Pat Goltz Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How big is the Gilded Flicker?

The Gilded Flicker is a medium-sized bird that weighs around 111 g.

Where does the Gilded Flicker live?

The Gilded Flicker is found across Central America & Caribbean and North America with a range covering NA, MA sw USA and nw Mexico, where it favours woodland, forest and well-treed country.

What family does the Gilded Flicker belong to?

The Gilded Flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) belongs to the Picidae family, in the order Piciformes.

What does the Gilded Flicker eat?

The Gilded Flicker is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.

Does the Gilded Flicker migrate?

The Gilded Flicker is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.

Is the Gilded Flicker endangered?

The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.

What sound does the Gilded Flicker make?

1 real field recording of the Gilded Flicker — including its call — can be played in the Songs & calls section on this page, credited to the recordist who captured it.

How large is the Gilded Flicker's range?

The Gilded Flicker has a mapped global range of about 378,000 km².

Conservation

Least Concern

Every bird benefits from bird-safe windows, native plants, and keeping cats indoors. Small changes at home add up to real protection.

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Guides for this bird

Best Suet Feeders for Woodpeckers

How to choose a suet feeder for woodpeckers — the styles compared, why a tail prop helps, and how to keep starlings off. A decision framework with the woodpecker species in the Birbs encyclopedia.

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Meet the Picidae

A field guide to the Picidae family — 239 species in the Birbs encyclopedia, with the best-known members to start with.

1 min read

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