Earlier this week we were looking for a Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) photo because, as you have likely seen, over 99% of the content we use we make ourselves. This is something we take pride in at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History. We write, we photograph, we record, we film, and we create. We do not use outside materials except when there is no other alternative…and then we immediately try to get out and get the missing content ourselves. Twan and I did not have many Northern Flicker pictures, each of us with only one real usable image. They fall into that category of not abundant (like a Black-capped Chickadee or an American Robin) but common enough that it does not make you stop and think, “Hey, I need to take this bird’s picture!” I had a photo of a male (note the black mustache) in an oak tree against the blue sky from several years ago, and the next day I ended up seeing a female in an oak tree. It is not the best picture, being high, distant, and on a very dark day, but I had to take a shot of her.
Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
