Colaptes is the genus of woodpeckers which contains the flickers. The scientific name means "the pecker", Latinized from the Greek verb kolápto (κολάπτω), "to peck". One well-known member of this genus is the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus), a subspecies of which is known in parts of the southern U.S. as the "Yellowhammer". It is the state bird of Alabama, and the state's nickname is the "Yellowhammer State".