When woodpeckers go to work ‘drilling’ for the insects they rely on for food, we can clearly see that they do significant damage to the tree trunks they peck.   Observing this behavior, it’s a reasonable question to ask: “Do Woodpeckers Kill Trees?”.

In this article, we’ll be answering this question using data that biologists and arborologists have discovered. Hopefully, in learning more about the ‘true’ damage that woodpeckers cause, you can develop a newfound appreciation for these fascinating and resourceful birds.

So, do woodpeckers kill trees?  Woodpeckers do minor damage to individual trees but are extremely critical in helping a forest stay healthy.  So, overall, woodpeckers are highly beneficial for trees as a whole.  Let’s take a closer look at why!

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Throughout the eastern United States and even into parts of the Pacific Northwest, the Pileated Woodpecker is a common sight. This striking bird is very large—arguably reaching ‘crow size’ territory—with many observers reporting sizes that might surprise you.

So, how big is a Pileated Woodpecker? In this article, we’ll be exploring the wide variety of Pileated Woodpecker sizes, starting from when this bird hatches to when it reaches full maturity.

Photo Credit: Andy on Flickr

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Pileated woodpeckers are easily identifiable by it’s massive size, pinpointed head plumage and bold streaks of red, black, and white.  You will often see them perched on the sides of dead or dying trees, and if you’re lucky, you might occasionally find one battering away at a section of wood, as woodpeckers are known to do.

Once you’ve seen one of these birds working its way through a tree, you might find yourself wondering, “What do Pileated Woodpeckers eat?”.

Photo Credit: Charles de Millie-Isles on Flickr

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I have spent the last two months running experiments to figure out how to attract woodpeckers to feeders and thought some other folks would be interested in the results.

This was a massive case of making lemonade when life gives you lemons so if you find the article useful then it is a double bonus for me!

Attracting Woodpeckers to Your Bird Feeders

The general steps for getting woodpeckers to eat at your feeders are as follows:

• Make your yard hospitable for woodpeckers
• Understand which types of woodpecker are present
• Feed peanuts for larger woodpeckers
• Feed suet for smaller woodpeckers
• Consider Feeder Placement (Open vs Treeline)
• Feed Consistently

Let’s look at each of these steps in a little more detail.
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The red headed woodpecker is one of my absolute favorite birds.  I think I like them so much because they are the perfect combination of stunning beauty with a bad attitude that guys find irresistible.

Red headed woodpeckers are interesting in that they always attract tremendous attention from bird watchers but not much is actually known about them.  I did a little research and came up with some interesting facts and observations about these beautiful birds.

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Many a backyard birder has been driven batty in their attempt to keep squirrels out of their bird feeders.  I thought some folks might find it interesting to see the five step approach I use that is highly effective.

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