What was the big yellow bird in my Northern Virginia front yard?

Question

It sat on a fence about 50 feet away.  Its shape and size resembled a mockingbird or a meadowlark:  fairly large, sleek, long beak and tail.  But its chest was yellow with black dots and when it flew away I saw that it had a white rump under its wings, and the wings seemed barred black and white.  I was thinking maybe a kind of woodpecker?

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

I think you saw a Northern Flicker (yellow-shafted).  They do have distinct white rumps usually seen in flight. 
http://www.surfbirds.com/media/gallery_photos/20050706080334.jpg
http://www.wbu.com/chipperwoods/photos/nflicker.htm

? · Answer

There's a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that has some range in Virginia, but it's not very yellow. It is a woodpecker. Is this what you saw? http://www.birds.cornell.edu/bfl/speciesaccts/yebsap.html
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickarr/15078203/
Another possibility is the Eastern Meadowlark. Did it sing "two-two-two-two" to you? http://www.birds.cornell.edu/BOW/easmea/
http://www.shawcreekbirdsupply.com/eastern_meadowlark.jpg

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What was the big yellow bird in my Northern Virginia front yard?

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