Woodpecker

ely · March 10, 2011, 03:33:01 PM

does this mean i have to start eating all the spiders instead of spraying for them? :D

clww · March 10, 2011, 04:19:57 PM

Just those with 8 legs.

Stephen1 · March 16, 2011, 10:53:14 AM

steve, you haven't taken care of those little guys yet? what are you doing up there, there only woodpeckers. :D

sbishop · March 17, 2011, 02:28:54 PM

Was at the camp yesterday, took the wife with me so she could see why we don't need woodpeckers around the camp.

look at this new hole they got going.....i was almost in tears!

we stayed for about 4hrs with the 12gauge ready but no luck.

I put up a bunch of pie plates hanging from strings...they were banging quite loudly yesterday so lets hope this works until spring time so i can get this place chinked and stain.

any suggestion on how to plug this hole beside stuffing it with a dead woodpecker?

beenthere · March 17, 2011, 05:54:21 PM

Are they woodpeckers, and not squirrels?
If gone, rat trap is my best recommendation.

sbishop · March 20, 2011, 08:32:15 PM

A friend of mine that was with me last week stopped by my camp today and reporting to wasn't any new damage....so the pie plates are working or the woodpecker is went south for a week! 8)

Sbishop

isawlogs · March 20, 2011, 09:17:03 PM

Woodpeckers :

This is a pic of the barn here, the upper part is drive in. In the summer it is also garage/parking/repair area. See those nice capola's on the roof , those are open to the inside now. This type of roof is very echowee when no hay is in there to stop the echo. These capola's are like bells on a church In the spring the woodpeckers will drum as said above for mating/choosing/dating. Those little buggers(woodpecker) wait till you are bent over under a hood and will attack them with a passion drumming for all there worth on those ~~dam~~ capola's

First time I was sure the roof was caving in :

northwoods1 · March 23, 2011, 12:18:18 PM

Quote from: sbishop on March 20, 2011, 08:32:15 PM
A friend of mine that was with me last week stopped by my camp today and reporting to wasn't any new damage....so the pie plates are working or the woodpecker is went south for a week! 8)

Sbishop

Sbishop, I knew when you posted the 1st pics that it was not a woodpecker doing that damage but a squirrel. You can tell because it is chewing and trying to enlarge the existing cracks on your building trying to get in. Now with the last pics you posted you can see that it is able to get in there.

Forget about the woodpecker idea you are dealing with a squirrel :

Where does that hole lead too? Is that full round log or siding on a stick frame built structure?

It is most likely a red squirrel but could be a flying squirrel like one of the 1st posters mentioned.

I will tell you how to deal with it and verify what I am saying, get a rat trap and use peanut butter as bait. Fasten a small board temporarily to the log by that hole and set the trap on it and fasten the trap down. Next time you come to visit the culprit will be in it and it will be a red or flying squirrel. If you catch one flying squirrel there will be more they always shack up together there will be several.

ely · March 23, 2011, 01:47:46 PM

and for the record, squirrel is way better than woodpeckers, in the skillet. digin1

SwampDonkey · March 23, 2011, 05:17:39 PM

A squirrel may possibly have enlarged the hole, but the initial attack is a woodpecker because no squirrel has a peek long enough to chew into a deep narrow crevass as shown in the first pictures.

beenthere · March 23, 2011, 05:29:57 PM

What?? Squirrels don't have long peeks?? Learning something new ever day here.

Quoteno squirrel has a peek long enough to chew into a deep narrow crevass as shown in the first pictures

SwampDonkey · March 23, 2011, 06:09:52 PM

:D :D Keep up. ;)

northwoods1 · March 24, 2011, 10:22:28 AM

Quote from: SwampDonkey on March 23, 2011, 05:17:39 PM
A squirrel may possibly have enlarged the hole, but the initial attack is a woodpecker because no squirrel has a peek long enough to chew into a deep narrow crevass as shown in the first pictures.

Don't make me go outside and take pictures of my cedar siding showing the same exact kind of damage which is being done by flying squirrels :D

or I should say "was" being done

I've been battling those things for a while now, one of the drawbacks of having wood siding and having a number of bird feeders containing sunflowers seeds just off the deck. In every case the start at a crack and try to enlarge it exactly as shown in the pics. They can scamper around on a wood sided house like there is nothing to it.

No point in debating it though all he has to do is get a rat trap, put it on a board like I said next to the hole w/some peanut butter as bait and he will find out real quick that it is a squirrel. Maybe we could take bets just to make it a little more interesting

:D

clww · March 24, 2011, 10:38:07 AM

What if it's both?

SwampDonkey · March 24, 2011, 11:48:07 AM

One good woodpecker's initial invasion becomes an opportunity for a squirrel. Works the same in pecker poles. ;) Sometimes it's an owl in the wood pecker house, or in an abandoned porcupine den in a hollow hardwood. ;D

sbishop · March 27, 2011, 07:15:25 PM

Can flying squirels do this kind of damage? i seen 4 of those guys about a month ago up there!

SwampDonkey · March 27, 2011, 07:27:31 PM

They can chew like any other squirrel. Do the holes look chewed or pecked? Maybe both if you have them tag team'n it. ;D

I've never seen a flying squirrel in my life, let alone 4 at once. And I've stayed in a lot of hunting camps over the years. All we trapped was red squirrels. :D

beenthere · March 27, 2011, 08:25:30 PM

Quote from: sbishop on March 27, 2011, 07:15:25 PM
Can flying squirels do this kind of damage? i seen 4 of those guys about a month ago up there!

Google "flying squirrel damage" and you will get several hits that mention their chewing to get inside to build a nest.
Is there much of a void behind that "hole" you pictured?

Thehardway · March 28, 2011, 08:16:49 AM

I had a wood pecker decide that the open edge of one of my SIP panels was a great place to build a temporary home. He made a hole about 3" in dia. and about 10" deep. I allowed him to winter over in his Energy star compliant, LEED certified home for the remainder of the winter before evicting him and filling the hole with greatstuff. I beleive the house should have a historical marker placed outside as the first energy efficient wildlife habitat. The woodpecker and I were well accustomed to each other and he would visit on a regular basis. I also had 2 nests of barn swallows raised while the house was open and a third nest that a momma abandoned due to my activity.

Here is an environmentally friendly solution which is not specie selective. Most of the time it will merely cause severe discomfort but not kill.

Run 2 peices of 14ga. romex wire up and across the area of interest. Staple it to the wood. The wires should be stripped back to expose the copper wire and placed no more than 1.5" apart. A alternating runs can be done for large areas. Put a plug on the other end and plug it into a 110V receptacle. The next time the squirrel or bird visits, it will be an electrifying experience he has and he will only try a couple times before figuring out he is not welcome.

This works great for keeping squirrels out of bird feeders mounted on wood posts too.

sbishop · March 29, 2011, 09:49:26 AM

TheHardWay,

That is a really good option....but i don't have power....the only power i have is from a shotgun... :D

i'm hoping to make a visit there in the next week or 2...i'll provide an update.