Pecking on wood is a common behavior for birds. However, not everyone knows what types of birds peck on wood or why they do it.
This article will cover 12 different types of birds that peck on wood, along with their common traits and habitats to help you identify each type as they fly by your window!
Table of Contents
Downy Woodpecker
Downy Woodpeckers are known for their unusual ability to bore into wood, yet they only peck at the surface.The Downy Woodpecker is a small bird that measures about 5.5 – 7.0″ inches in length, and can be found in North America, Europe, Asia and parts of Africa.
They feed on insects such as ants and termites by pecking them out of holes they have bored into trees with their bills. This leaves piles of sawdust on the ground below where these birds were working.
- Range: United States and Canada.
- Habitat: Orchards, parks, forested areas, deciduous woods.
- Length: 6.0 – 7.0″ in. (15.2 – 17.8 cm)
- Weight: 0.7 – 1.02 oz (20-29 g).
- Wingspan: 9.7 – 11.9″ in (24.6 – 30.2 cm).
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Pileated Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpeckers are large, black birds that live in the eastern United States. They are known as the largest woodpecker in North America. They are found throughout most of the country, with populations thriving in southern New England and parts of Canada.
Pileated Woodpeckers eat insects, nuts, seeds, berries and fruit. They also have a unique habit of pecking on wood to find food such as carpenter ants or beetle larvae.
- Range: United States, Canada and Mexico.
- Habitat: Forest, tropical forests, wetlands, rural gardens, urban areas.
- Length: 15.3 – 19.5″ in. (39 -49.5 cm).
- Weight: 300 g (11 oz).
- Wingspan: 25 – 30 in (63.5 to 76 cm).
Related Posts: How to Attract Pileated Woodpeckers to your yard?
Hairy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpeckers are a type of woodpecker that is seen throughout the United States. They love to peck on wood, and can be found chiseling away at trees, telephone poles, and homes. These small woodpeckers peck at trees and wood to get food.
They often go after insects in rotting logs and make holes to live in for shelter from the cold winter months. These birds have hairy feathers on their heads which helps keep them warm during cold winters.
- Range: North and Central America.
- Habitat: Forest edges, open woodlands.
- Length: 6.69 – 10.4 in (17 – 26.5 cm).
- Weight: 42 – 94 g (1.48 – 3.3 oz).
- Wingspan: 13.4 – 17.1″ in. (34 – 43.5 cm).
Northern Flicker
Northern Flickers are common throughout North America. Northern Flickers are a type of woodpecker that love to peck on wood for nesting material and food. This can be seen by the large holes they make in trees, or just about any wooden object.
Flickers have an extremely strong tongue and a strong neck muscle that allows them to keep their head up while drilling into wood. They also have very stiff tail feathers that help support them when they drill into things.
- Range: North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, Cayman Islands.
- Habitat: Woodlands, forest edges, yards, parks, groves, clearings, burnt areas.
- Length: 11 -14.4″ in. (28 -36.5 cm).
- Weight: 86 to 167 g (3.0 to 5.9 oz).
- Wingspan: 16.5 – 21.7″ ( 42–55 cm).
Related Post: How to Attract Northern Flickers to your yard?
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-headed Woodpeckers are one of the most recognizable species in North America. In addition to their distinctive red heads, they also have a black back and large white wing patches. Do Red-headed Woodpeckers peck on wood? Yes, but not as much as other woodpecker species.
They are not very good at it because their beaks are designed for climbing trees and eating insects, which makes up about 60% of their diet. They use their long tongue to extract ants from trees or from the ground.
- Range: North America.
- Habitat: Deciduous woodlands, orchards, parks, farmland, forest edges, swamps.
- Length: 7.9 to 10.0″ in. (20 to 25.5 cm).
- Weight: 55 to 98 g (1.9 to 3.5 oz).
- Wingspan: 16.5″ (41.9 cm).
Related Post: Interesting Red-headed Woodpecker Facts
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpeckers are native to North America and range from the southern United States to Canada. They are often seen climbing trees and hammering on dead or dying branches to get insects out from inside them.
The name “red-bellied” comes from their bright red feathers on their chest. Woodpeckers do not peck at living trees, but they will peck holes into rotting logs and stumps to search for food.
- Range: North America, Bahamas.
- Habitat: Forest, savanna, and wetlands.
- Length: 9.00 – 10.51″ in. (22.9 – 26.7 cm).
- Weight: 55 – 90 g (1.9 to 3.17 oz).
- Wingspan: 14.6 – 18.3″ (37 – 46.5 cm).
Acorn Woodpecker
Acorn Woodpeckers are a type of woodpecker that live in the United States. They can be found mainly in southern California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Acorn Woodpeckers peck into trees to get food such as insects or sap from the tree bark.
They also use their bills to drill holes into trees so they store acorns and other nuts inside them. This behavior can cause significant damage to the tree’s surface and weakening its structure over time.
- Range: Oregon, California, southwestern United States, Central America.
- Habitat: Oak and pine-oak woodlands.
- Length: 7.87 – 9.3″ in (20 – 23.5 cm).
- Weight: 2.3 – 3.2 oz (66 – 91 g).
- Wingspan: 13.4 – 16.5″ in (34 – 42 cm).
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
The yellow-bellied sapsucker feeds by drilling holes in trees to extract sap from tree trunks, branches, or limbs. This common North American bird uses its sharp, barbed tongue to feed on the sweet liquid that it finds deep inside trees.
While they typically peck only once or twice per minute, they will also make quick strikes against other wood surfaces as well, when no sap is available.
- Range: North America.
- Habitat: Forested areas, suburban or urban environments.
- Length: 7.08 – 8.8″ in (18 – 22.5 cm).
- Weight: 1.5 – 1.9 oz (42 – 55 g).
- Wingspan: 13.4 – 16.0″ in (34 – 41 cm).
Related Post: 16 Interesting Sapsucker Facts Revealed
Red-breasted Sapsucker
The Red-breasted Sapsucker is a North American species of bird that can be found in deciduous and mixed forests. They are best known for drilling holes into the bark of trees to feed on sap from living, healthy trees.
This species uses this beak to create a hole in the bark of trees, where it will then feed off sap. They can also use their beaks to peel away pieces of bark and wood in order to get at the softer parts underneath.
- Range: Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California.
- Habitat: Coniferous forests.
- Length: 7.7 – 8.8″ in (19.5 – 22.5 cm).
- Weight: 1.87 – 2.24 oz (53 – 63.5 g).
- Wingspan: 14.6 – 15.9″ in (37 – 40.5 cm).
Red-breasted Nuthatch
The Red-breasted Nuthatch lives in North America and breeds from the Eastern United States to British Columbia, Canada. They prefer to live in coniferous trees, and are most active in the winter months.
The Red-breasted Nuthatch are omnivores and feed on seeds, nuts, insects, larvae and spiders which they find by pecking at the bark of trees or by climbing high into the tree canopy to look for food.
- Range: North America
- Habitat: Dense coniferous forest
- Length: 4.1 – 4.5″ in (10.4 – 11.4 cm)
- Weight: 0.26 – 0.47 oz (7.5 – 13.2 g).
- Wingspan: 7.0 – 8.0″ in (17.8 – 20.3 cm).
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White-breasted Nuthatch
The White-breasted Nuthatch is a bird that likes to live in trees and feed on the seeds of pine cones. In order to get at these tasty treats, they will peck away at them until they break open.
Do White-breasted Nuthatches peck on wood? Well, not only do they use their beaks to find food, but they also use it for other things such as drumming out an alarm or attracting mates.
- Range: North America, Mexico.
- Habitat: Mature woods, deciduous than coniferous forests, woodlands, parks.
- Length: 4.7 – 5.5 in (12 – 14 cm).
- Weight: 0.63 – 1.0 oz (18 – 31 g).
- Wingspan: 7.8 – 11 in (20 – 28 cm).
Carolina Chickadee
Chickadees are one of the most common and familiar birds in North America. They have a wide range of habitats, from woodlands to urban areas. Some people wonder if Carolina Chickadees peck on wood as part of their natural behavior.
It is true that they often peck at soft wood or a rotten or deteriorated section of a tree. However, this type of activity is usually only done when creating a nest or when food sources are scarce.
- Range: Eastern part of North America.
- Habitat: Coniferous forests, deciduous forests, urban areas, and mixed woodlands.
- Length: 4.3 – 5.1 in (11 – 13 cm).
- Weight: 8.8 – 11.6 g (0.31 – 0.41 oz).
- Wingspan: 6.3 – 8.3 in (15 – 21 cm).
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Frequently Asked Questions
What birds peck holes in houses?
Many birds are known to peck holes in houses. Flickers, woodpeckers, chickadees and nuthatches all have been known to create damage to structures through their incessant need for nesting material.
What does it mean when a woodpecker is pecking at your house?
Woodpeckers are in the habit of pecking on homes, often causing structural damage. They do this for two reasons: to find food and to attract mates.
Can woodpeckers peck through steel siding?
Woodpeckers are often associated with pecking through wood. This might lead you to believe that they can also penetrate steel siding, but this is not the case. Steel siding is designed to be more durable than regular wood, and it cannot be penetrated by a woodpecker’s bill.
Do woodpeckers strip bark off trees?
The typical way a woodpecker removes bark is by tapping on the tree in search of insects and other invertebrates living beneath it. This makes an oval-shaped area where the hard outer layer has been removed, leaving softer inner layers exposed.
Why do sapsuckers drill holes in trees?
The sapsucker, drills holes in trees to extract sap and other nutrients from the tree. The holes can range from 1-5 cm deep, and they vary in size depending on what type of tree is being drilled into.
