Big thanks to this Northern Flicker that flew directly at one of our trail cameras, perched atop a shrubby draw, thus providing the perfect opportunity to showcase the mesmerizing, undulating flight pattern common to most woodpeckers (stick around for the super slo-mo clip). The gliding periods between staccato wingbeat bursts is believed to serve several functions, primary among them energy conservation. As relatively large foraging birds, those mid-flight rest periods help woodpeckers maximize