Woopeckers

by Jane
(New Hampshire)

Hello
I have been feeding our feathered friends for over 25 years and am fortunate to have a variety of woodpeckers;
downy, hairy, red bellied and pilleated.
This winter I have noticed an increase of them at my feeding stations and now with Spring finally here we have been fortunate to watch as they are getting ready for their young.

Last year I heard a very loud banging sound and thought that a bird had gotten stuck in our metal exhaust for our kitchen hood. I hired someone to try to look inside and release him but the tech couldn't see anything.

This year I heard the noise again and found that it was a red bellied woodpecker drumming away to attract a female. This goes on every morning but we welcome the noise knowing that it is not a bird in distress. We must have 4 pairs along with may pairs of hairy and downy woodpeckers.

I feed them a variety of suet, hanging trays of nuts and dried fruit and feeders with sun flower seeds. Their favorite is the suet which they go through every 3-4 days.

I found that attaching the suet baskets to the trunk and branches of the trees is far more desirable than hanging them. The red bellied is less apt to cling from suet cages that are suspended from a hook. You can also buy small flat bed feeders which are ideal for nuts and fruit and hang them from a hook. Orange slices will attract a variety of birds such as orioles, mocking and cat birds as well as the woodpeckers.
If you are lucky enough to have woodpeckers at your feeders you will notice that the larger ones eat first while the smaller ones wait.

Comment
Thanks for the tip Jane regarding attaching the suet feeders to the tree trunk and branches. I'm sending my husband out right now...
Susan