Which birds peck wood

JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. You must have JavaScript enabled in your browser to utilize the functionality of this website. If you have problems with birds on the siding of a home or business, it's likely one of two common bird problems, woodpeckers or swallows.

Woodpeckers will peck holes in wood and stucco to attract mates, find or store food, or establish a territory. Smaller birds have been known at times to nest in abandoned woodpecker holes. Swallows like to nest on vertical surfaces under eaves or overhangs.

The mud nests and bird droppings can create a mess on the side of a home or business. If you don't have the time or resources to handle your bird problem, we can help! Absolute Bird Control can put you in touch with an " Authorized Installer " in your area, call us at or email us.

About Us. Several readers contacted us recently, asking for suggestions for getting woodpeckers to leave their homes alone. While other species, from hairy to red-bellied to pileated woodpeckers, also hammer at wood siding, downies are the most plentiful woodpecker and are the more usual culprits.

Think like a woodpecker for a minute: A wood-sided home resembles a very large, very flat tree, and woodpeckers spend their days pecking at trees. A few bee species, such as the carpenter bee, can cause damage, and it may be worthwhile to call an exterminator in such cases. Still, a young, inexperienced woodpecker might dig small holes on the off chance an insect lies inside the wood.

Don Severson A red-bellied woodpecker, a sunflower seed held firmly in its beak, heads away from a feeder to cache the food for later consumption. Things designed to scare birds, such as aluminum foil strips, reflective tape, eye balloons and windsocks may deter food-seeking downies from further pecking. If the woodpecker has been excavating a hole for a roosting or nesting site, plug this quickly. Then, bird deterrents may prevent return visits; if not, covering the damaged area with plastic netting stops further probing.

In extreme cases, investing in man-made siding for the affected area should put a stop to hole drilling. Wood siding is often quite resonant, thus very pleasing to woodpeckers.

See sidebar for tips. It should be noted that humans often contribute to woodpecker problems: We cut down forests and woodlands and build houses in their place, and owners of woodlots often remove all the dead wood. These practices leave woodpeckers without places to explore and drum on, so they turn to alternatives.

Downies can be incredibly persistent, so it sometimes takes some work to discourage an individual bird. As frustrating as that can be, woodpeckers are protected from harm by state and federal laws. Control techniques, like those advocated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, usually work well to discourage foraging or roost-hole-creating woodpeckers see sidebar. If a woodpecker becomes inured to one tactic, homeowners need to try a new one from the list of scare tactics.

Paul resident Val Cunningham, who volunteers with the St. The bird is uniquely equipped for his habit and sports a strong beak and neck, as well as a skull filled with a sponge-like tissue that protects his brain from rattling around during his incessant pecking. Instead he uses his pecking to communicate with other birds. The woodpecker pecks to attract a mate, to warn off predators and rivals and as a way to mark his turf.

A woodpecker loves to dine on insects that live in old and rotten trees, and he often uses his strong beak and relentless pecking—up to 10, pecks a day—to extract bugs from the wood. He also sports a long, sticky tongue that allows him to reach into the pecked holes and pull out his dinner.

Favorite snacks include ants and larvae. This method is especially helpful to the woodpecker during cooler months when many insects hibernate in trees—the woodpecker pecks away until he reaches them.