How to Attract Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers
The downy woodpecker is the smallest woodpecker in North America and a common year-round feeder visitor. The hairy woodpecker looks almost the same but is bigger, with a much longer beak. Both come readily to suet.
What woodpeckers eat
Suet is the number one food for both. They also eat shelled peanuts and black-oil sunflower.
If squirrels steal your suet, hot pepper suet helps. Birds don't feel the heat, but squirrels do.
High-fat suet cakes that fit standard suet cages. Woodpeckers, nuthatches and chickadees rely on fat like this to get through cold nights.
Check price on Amazon for C&S Hi-Energy Suet Cakes (opens Amazon)Suet with hot pepper mixed in. Birds can't taste the heat, but squirrels and raccoons hate it.
Check price on Amazon for C&S Hot Pepper Delight Suet (opens Amazon)Use an upside-down suet feeder
Woodpeckers naturally cling and feed upside down, but starlings and grackles struggle to. An upside-down suet feeder keeps the suet for the woodpeckers.
Woodpeckers, nuthatches and chickadees happily hang upside down to eat. Starlings and grackles mostly don't, so the suet goes to the birds you want.
Check price on Amazon for Birds Choice Upside-Down Suet Feeder (opens Amazon)Leave dead wood
Where it's safe, a dead tree or large dead branch gives woodpeckers insects to eat and a place to dig nest holes. They rarely use nest boxes.
How to tell downy from hairy
Compare the beak to the head. A downy's beak is short, about a third the length of its head. A hairy's beak is nearly as long as its head. Males of both have a small red patch on the back of the head.
The friendliest field guide for beginners. Edited photos and plain-language notes make identification easy without knowing any jargon.
Check price on Amazon for Kaufman Field Guide to Birds of North America (opens Amazon)Frequently asked questions
Will suet go bad in summer?
Regular suet can soften and spoil in heat. Use no-melt suet in summer, or offer it only in cooler months.
Why is a woodpecker drumming on my house?
In spring, woodpeckers drum on loud surfaces to attract mates and claim territory. It usually stops after a few weeks.
Do woodpeckers migrate?
Downy and hairy woodpeckers stay year-round across most of their range.
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