Woodpecker Control

Woodpeckers "drum" on houses. It's a vibrating, sometimes annoying sound. Even worse, woodpeckers often cause serious damage to siding, columns and other wooden structures. Soft woods, like cedar, are favorite drumming surfaces.

Why do they do it? Drumming is a means of communication between woodpeckers. Like some birds sing, woodpeckers drum. They drum to say, "Here I am, this is my territory." In some cases, woodpeckers hammer on siding to search for insects. Often, after the birds get started, they make a hole through the siding, pull out insulation, and make a nest. Often, well-fed woodpeckers with a secure territory have spare time to peck wood because, well, that's just the way they are. Woodpeckers may try drumming on other surfaces like metal gutters and downspouts. If they like the sound, they keep it up.

What kinds of woodpeckers damage houses? Among the birds which might be responsible are the Yellow-shafted Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Red-headed Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker and Downy Woodpecker. In addition to the woodpeckers, the Brown-headed Nuthatch sometimes makes holes in wood siding.

How can you stop woodpecker damage? First, check for insects. Woodpeckers feed on insects in wood. If insects are present, call your county Extension agent. He or she can suggest a chemical to control them. Then try to make devices to scare the birds. The longer you delay, the harder it is to scare the birds away. Here are some suggestions:

Use aluminum foil strips as follows: cut several strips two or three inches wide and two to three feet long. Attach a six inch string to one end of each strip. Drive small nails two to three feet above the drumming site; space six to ten feet apart. Attach each string to nail so strips hang freely and move with every breeze. It is the motion which frightens the birds away.

Install pinwheels. If available, purchase windmills with reflective vanes. Attach at the drumming site with brads, pins, small staples, or tape. Be certain revolving vanes are moving freely.

Suspend a series of light weight objects, like pie tins, on a string. Pass the string through eyelets screwed into the house in the vicinity where the woodpeckers is drumming. Run one end of the string to a convenient window. Jerk on the string to make the objects move whenever you hear the drumming.

Naphthalene moth repellent in mesh bags can be pinned to the siding.

Snake, owl, or hawk models can be mounted at drumming places. This often works, but bluejays and other birds may come to scream at the fake predators.

A temporary control is to staple a large sheet of plastic over the area that woodpeckers are damaging. As a very last resort, it may be necessary to kill the birds. But keep in mind that all woodpeckers are protected by state and federal law. In addition, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker is classified as "endangered". Before killing woodpeckers, identify the offending species and requests permits to kill the birds from the state and federal agencies. No poisons are labeled to kill woodpeckers. Rat traps nailed to the siding and baited with a live insect or suet will kill a pest woodpecker.

State permits are obtained from Chief of Game, Game and Fish Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, 270 Washington Street, S.W., Trinity Washington Building, Atlanta, Georgia 30303.

Federal permits are obtained from Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Richard B. Russell Federal Building, 75 Spring Street, S.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30303. The telephone number is 404-221-5872.

For more information on woodpecker control, contact your local county Extension office.