Whatbird.com

We have a red-bellied woodpecker who insists on drumming his beak against our plastic coach-style birdfeeder on a pole.  We are surrounded by trees, which we see him on frequently, but just as frequently we hear the plastic staccato sound of him perched on the birdfeeder, drumming his little beak to no avail!  Do you think woodpeckers have the foresight to know that if they rattle the birdfeeder enough, the last of the seed will fall down into the tray?  Or is he just confused?  We are awakened by him in the morning - he is quite a spectacle!

OH my am i glad to hear I am not the only one that has this issue. I have two redbellied woodpeckers that have drilled holes in the side of my plastic feeder,,, they now feed out of that as opposed to getting the snacks out of the tray below. Its the funniest thing. He has eaten down past his little drill hole, so I guess now hes gonna eat the lower food... but if its full he eats out of his drilled hole.

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Itsjustdeb

i found out why they do that..... its a mating call. The male drums on something really loudly to attract a mate.

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Itsjustdeb

Well, he must have found a mate...we haven't heard the drumming in a couple weeks - hope they're happy together....