They have a very distinctive call. Unfortunately I didn't get it on my video, but you can hear it here:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-bellied_Woodpecker/sounds
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woodpecker
- Thread starter DogBunny
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They have a very distinctive call. Unfortunately I didn't get it on my video, but you can hear it here:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-bellied_Woodpecker/sounds
cycleranger
Generally Ok.
A few years back I had a woodpecker that lived in my big oak tree in the middle of the yard.
It was pretty cool to watch and hear.
Unfortunately the big oak tree was blown down in a storm and the woodpecker moved on.
It was pretty cool to watch and hear.
Unfortunately the big oak tree was blown down in a storm and the woodpecker moved on.
Here's the LONG rest of the story This happened in 2020. My first encounter with a Red-Belly in Austin. Copied from a message that I sent to my niece:
I spotted this Red-Bellied Woodpecker and it's nest in my back yard.
It is in a dead Hackberry tree. Hackberries are trash trees in Texas. I cut down as much of it as I could about five years ago in order to open things up for more desirable trees, including a plum. My little electric chainsaw was too small to go any further, and so the tree became standing dead wood.
I staged this picture by sprinkling some dry cat food next to the fence for Lucy. I wanted you to see Lucy's stature compared to the fence. Lucy has become quite the backyard escape artist. She can jump over this 6-foot fence with no problem. It is quite awesome and a little unbelievable to see. Whenever I caught her in the act, I'd say to myself "did I really just see that"?
So, you will notice that I have extended the fence pickets with some wire fencing. Lucy also burrows under the fence, especially after a rain when the soil is soft. There is a possum that I think comes into my backyard to drink from the pond -- I think it usually starts the burrowing and then Lucy enlarges it. She can get through an incredibly tiny burrow.
Finally, when all else fails, Lucy just goes through the fence. She will find a compromised picket and punch it out, or she will find a rotting knothole and enlarge it. Again, she can squeeze through a really small opening.
I have spent all winter and several hundred dollars Lucy-proofing the backyard. I have repaired, reinforced and extended the picket fence, extended the part of my backyard fence that is still chain-link, and laid down heavy galvanized wire animal fencing panel material on the ground to thwart digging under the fences.
Back to the woodpecker.
I never noticed the woodpecker creating the nest, but I bet it probably would only take a motivated builder a day or so to make.
I've seen other woodpeckers here, but this is the first red-bellied.
I took this pic on the same day that I took the first picture. I thought it was a female, and was pretty excited that I had a mating pair.
Unfortunately, this is what I really had -- a European Starling. An invasive species, very common and unremarkable.
The starling constantly harasses the woodpecker. I think the starling has a near-by nest, and doesn't like the woodpecker being in such a commanding position. The starling is bigger, aggressive, and always gets the best of their squabbles.
The dead Hackberry is pretty popular. Here is the starling and a squirrel.
And here is one of my neighbor's many semi-feral cats.
Here is a video of my woodpecker. Unfortunately he never sings, and the video is a little long, but it is soothing and you can see what a cute little guy he is.
Here is a very brief video of one of my cats watching my woodpecker video.
I never actually saw two red-bellies together, but I did a hear a second one behind me while watching this one. That happened a couple of times. I don't know if they were a mixed pair or not.
The starling completely ruined everything for the woodpeckers and my enjoyment of them. I'm pretty sure that I witnessed what turned out to be the final straw. Somehow both the woodpecker and the starling were in the tree trunk nest at the same time. I don't know who was in their first and who followed. But I did see the woodpecker try to leave. The starling must have been holding onto it with its beak. The woodpecker was trying to escape and was making quite the distress call, loud and frenzied. I didn't figure out what was happening until afterwards. This went on for quite some time, maybe as much as thirty seconds. Finally the woodpecker broke free and flew free of the hole amidst a small cloud of its feathers that had been pulled loose. The starling followed a few seconds later -- that's when I realized what I had seen.
The woodpecker has become much scarcer since that incident. But I do occasionally see or, more often, hear it.
I spotted this Red-Bellied Woodpecker and it's nest in my back yard.
It is in a dead Hackberry tree. Hackberries are trash trees in Texas. I cut down as much of it as I could about five years ago in order to open things up for more desirable trees, including a plum. My little electric chainsaw was too small to go any further, and so the tree became standing dead wood.
I staged this picture by sprinkling some dry cat food next to the fence for Lucy. I wanted you to see Lucy's stature compared to the fence. Lucy has become quite the backyard escape artist. She can jump over this 6-foot fence with no problem. It is quite awesome and a little unbelievable to see. Whenever I caught her in the act, I'd say to myself "did I really just see that"?
So, you will notice that I have extended the fence pickets with some wire fencing. Lucy also burrows under the fence, especially after a rain when the soil is soft. There is a possum that I think comes into my backyard to drink from the pond -- I think it usually starts the burrowing and then Lucy enlarges it. She can get through an incredibly tiny burrow.
Finally, when all else fails, Lucy just goes through the fence. She will find a compromised picket and punch it out, or she will find a rotting knothole and enlarge it. Again, she can squeeze through a really small opening.
I have spent all winter and several hundred dollars Lucy-proofing the backyard. I have repaired, reinforced and extended the picket fence, extended the part of my backyard fence that is still chain-link, and laid down heavy galvanized wire animal fencing panel material on the ground to thwart digging under the fences.
Back to the woodpecker.
I never noticed the woodpecker creating the nest, but I bet it probably would only take a motivated builder a day or so to make.
I've seen other woodpeckers here, but this is the first red-bellied.
I took this pic on the same day that I took the first picture. I thought it was a female, and was pretty excited that I had a mating pair.
Unfortunately, this is what I really had -- a European Starling. An invasive species, very common and unremarkable.
The starling constantly harasses the woodpecker. I think the starling has a near-by nest, and doesn't like the woodpecker being in such a commanding position. The starling is bigger, aggressive, and always gets the best of their squabbles.
The dead Hackberry is pretty popular. Here is the starling and a squirrel.
And here is one of my neighbor's many semi-feral cats.
I never actually saw two red-bellies together, but I did a hear a second one behind me while watching this one. That happened a couple of times. I don't know if they were a mixed pair or not.
The starling completely ruined everything for the woodpeckers and my enjoyment of them. I'm pretty sure that I witnessed what turned out to be the final straw. Somehow both the woodpecker and the starling were in the tree trunk nest at the same time. I don't know who was in their first and who followed. But I did see the woodpecker try to leave. The starling must have been holding onto it with its beak. The woodpecker was trying to escape and was making quite the distress call, loud and frenzied. I didn't figure out what was happening until afterwards. This went on for quite some time, maybe as much as thirty seconds. Finally the woodpecker broke free and flew free of the hole amidst a small cloud of its feathers that had been pulled loose. The starling followed a few seconds later -- that's when I realized what I had seen.
The woodpecker has become much scarcer since that incident. But I do occasionally see or, more often, hear it.
I lived in a cedar house in North Georgia adjacent to the Chattahoochee National forest. We had an abundance of woodpeckers including those big pileated woodpeckers. We also had a serious problem with carpenter bees. The combination was pretty bad. A pileated woodpecker can decimate structural timbers in a heartbeat. It’s incredible, the chunks of wood they can throw.
My present house is brick on all sides. What isn’t brick is Hardie Board. The bees don’t like it. So, the woodpeckers keep to the dead trees.
My present house is brick on all sides. What isn’t brick is Hardie Board. The bees don’t like it. So, the woodpeckers keep to the dead trees.
https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_bk_w7000_0616.pdf
Did your damage look like this damage to a CEDAR house,? Did a Google, and this was the first hit. The pamphlet says the most common reason for woodpecker damage is nest-building, and the solution is to provide nest/roost boxes right where the damage occurs. Foraging, as was your case, is also given as a reason.
Really interesting. I'd never heard of or thought about woodpecker-caused structure damage.
The dead limb that my woodpeckers are nesting in is quite rotten, and I doubt it will survive this winter, but I'm going to make sure and will cut it down. In it's place I will hang a nest/roost box, plans for which are given in the linked PDF pamphlet.
They say that a .22 has a quieting effect...
If they're pileated one might figure that their rectal difficulties are such that the .22 would be merciful...
Seriously, nest box and enjoy the observations of the raising of young. Babies are special.
If they're pileated one might figure that their rectal difficulties are such that the .22 would be merciful...
Seriously, nest box and enjoy the observations of the raising of young. Babies are special.
We have red bellied woodpeckers visit our birdfeeder regularly. Our feeder is the squirrel proof type that closes when someone heavy sits on the perch. I have it set to stay open for a cardinal and finch at the same time. When the big woodpecker arrives, the feeder shuts itself quickly, but the woodpecker’s beak is long enough that he can reach behind the door and get his fill of cracked sunflower seeds.
Friends have a 200 year old log home that is plagued by dozens of woodpeckers. I guess the old logs are full of insects and the birds use the building as a large feeding station. They do a lot of damage to the building and unfortunately they haven’t found a cure for the problem.
Friends have a 200 year old log home that is plagued by dozens of woodpeckers. I guess the old logs are full of insects and the birds use the building as a large feeding station. They do a lot of damage to the building and unfortunately they haven’t found a cure for the problem.
I live in a log home and I have to watch constantly for carpenter bees. The bore 3/8" holes and lay their eggs in those holes, and the Pileated Woodpeckers love the larvae, Yes they have shredded my fascia boards in the past. I have found that CRC brake cleaner is a deadly and inexpensive way to deal with carpenter bees, plus I feel like a gunner on a B-17 when I shoot them down.
Badminton racket works great on the bees if you can afford to stay vigilant. Turn your back and they drill a hole.
Had a bad carpenter (bore) bee problem here ages ago. Did some research. Found out the females have a stinger, the males do not...
Females are docile... they'll avoid you like the plague. Males are agressive... they'll attack you, 'cept they don't have a stinger. They're all bark and no bite.
Once I learned that I took great delight in swatting the bastards outta the sky with my bare hand. Swat the buggers as far as I could, then walk over and step on 'em. The females got whatever sprayable, flammable liquid the was at arms reach at the time.
Females are docile... they'll avoid you like the plague. Males are agressive... they'll attack you, 'cept they don't have a stinger. They're all bark and no bite.
Once I learned that I took great delight in swatting the bastards outta the sky with my bare hand. Swat the buggers as far as I could, then walk over and step on 'em. The females got whatever sprayable, flammable liquid the was at arms reach at the time.
Most of my damage looked like the birds have x-ray vision. The bees drill in, then turn 90 degrees. The birds seem to know this. That’s how the damage looks.
We had a lot of downy woodpeckers too. They seemed to be constantly working on the house. The pileated woodpeckers pull off large pieces of wood. They make cartoon Woody Woodpecker look like an amateur.
I was losing my battle with carpenter bees around my garage. I used to knock them out of the air with a flyswatter! I tried traps, sprays etc but they always got back into the wood. My permanent solution was to clad everything in aluminum. They must sniff the remnants of their old homes because they still buzz around the areas where the holes used to be.
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A home-made insecticide I am experimenting with. 400 gm vodka, 400 gm rubbing alcohol 70%, 3 gm borax, 9 gm boric acid. Dissolve, shake shake till no "snow" in the squeez bottle. Squirt squirt. Harmless to mammals The liquids are the carrier (don't drink it tho) they evaporate and leave the borates, which are toxic to insects. I don't know if the birds would be affected, guess probably not. Boric acid dissolves better if there is borax too. Works nice on ant invasions, and carpenter ants...
https://www.amazon.com/Sunnyside-corporation-76904M-Advanced-Insecticide/dp/B01FWIP112
I never would have thought woodpeckers and insects could be so destructive.
I had a roach problem in my kitchen. I sealed and patched every hole, opening, crack, and crevice, and then I painted the insides of my cabinets with paint that I added this to. It worked for me.
I'll bet it would work on carpenter bees.
Just to be clear, I wouldn’t want to harm a woodpecker. They just want to eat. I have a lot of them here, as well as carpenter bees. The brick house is the cure. Or, otherwise get rid of the insects. Bricks are expensive!
Carpenter Bees?
Our house has a lot of Virginia Juniper in trim and siding and it seems anything with a width of a half inch or more is subject to attack.
Using wood paddle bits in 1/2" and 1", I took some small "cedar" log ends and empty containers to make traps.
Bore a central hole of one inch in the middle, upwards on the log but not entirely through. Use the 1/2" bit and intersect with the main one inch bore, coming in on a 45 degree angle upwards. Drill a few of these entrances. Clean the passageways of all swarf.
Drill a 1" hole through the lid of the container and secure it with a couple screws. Plastic containers are easiest over glass and metal lids. Bees see the holes, enter, climb up and then drop down into the container.
The badminton rackets are retired now for the most part.
I leave the carcasses in thinking pheromones may attract more. They work a charm.
Our house has a lot of Virginia Juniper in trim and siding and it seems anything with a width of a half inch or more is subject to attack.
Using wood paddle bits in 1/2" and 1", I took some small "cedar" log ends and empty containers to make traps.
Bore a central hole of one inch in the middle, upwards on the log but not entirely through. Use the 1/2" bit and intersect with the main one inch bore, coming in on a 45 degree angle upwards. Drill a few of these entrances. Clean the passageways of all swarf.
Drill a 1" hole through the lid of the container and secure it with a couple screws. Plastic containers are easiest over glass and metal lids. Bees see the holes, enter, climb up and then drop down into the container.
The badminton rackets are retired now for the most part.
I leave the carcasses in thinking pheromones may attract more. They work a charm.
In North Georgia there is a large cottage industry making those. I could buy them even at my local Ace Hardware. I hung them all around my house. They catch plenty. Not a cure. The shame is that they are pollinators. I have a son-in-law who puts out attractive carpenter bee habitats. They’re easier than working on the porch railings. He claims they help a lot, and don’t kill his pollinators.
I tried making home made traps before and never caught one bee all summer. Should they return I may try again.
I read to make the entrance holes 3/8", I built one at 3/8", didn't catch a one. 1/2" is the magic number.
There is also a product called NBS 30. I used it in the paint/stain on the fascia boards I replaced. seems to have worked on them. Time to re-stain the remaining fascia boards.
