Attracting Woodpeckers

Red-cockaded Woodpecker

 

Want to bring some woodpeckers to your yard?

Here are a few tips:

Put Out Some Suet

Woodpeckers really go for suet. You can buy suet cakes in many supermarkets and at other stores that sell bird food. Hang the cakes from tree branches in mesh bags, wire cages, or special suet feeders.

 

Offer Other Treats

Woodpeckers often eat seeds and nuts. Here are ways to feed them:

  • Tube feeder with black oil sunflower seeds
  • Peanut tube feeder with split peanuts (sold at birding stores)

 

Plant a Meal
Lots of woodpeckers are part-time fruit-eaters. So why not plant a fruit shrub or tree? Some possibilities are dogwood, cherry, or serviceberry.

 

Save Dead Wood
If you have a dead tree in your yard, think about leaving at least part of it standing. Tall stumps make great woodpecker cafes!

 

woodpecker illustration

Illustration by Michael Slack

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