Woodpeckers are good to have around to help balance the ecosystem. In fact, some people think it means good luck and prosperity when you see a woodpecker. Among other foods, woodpeckers eat a variety of insects—including those that can damage wood. Certain animals also use old woodpecker nest cavities. If a woodpecker is pecking your house, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have termites. It might be eating other bugs, such as spiders and ants. Or it might be pecking for territorial reasons. You can attract woodpeckers to your house with a woodpecker-specific feeder, such as a suet cage. Avoid pesticide and insecticide use to keep the birds healthy. Plant trees that produce nuts and berries; acorns from oak trees are a favorite for woodpeckers to eat. And avoid removing dead trees as long as they don’t pose a safety risk, as they provide nesting and foraging sites for woodpeckers. Here’s how to identify 12 types of North American woodpeckers. Male downy woodpeckers feature a bright red patch on the back of the head. Like all woodpeckers, downy woodpeckers use their stiff tail feathers as a tripod to balance against tree trunks. This gives them added stability and strength when drumming for insects, peeling bark away to feed, or drilling nesting cavities. Their tail feathers are often pointed, and the tail has a forked appearance that can be useful for identifying woodpeckers. Like female downy woodpeckers, female hairy woodpeckers lack the red coloration on the head. Juvenile birds have dark brown heads that gradually turn red with maturity during their first winter. These woodpeckers are fairly common in the eastern United States year-round. Both male and female birds have red, moderately crested heads with bold white markings. But the male birds also have a splash of red along their cheek stripe. Eastern birds usually display yellow or gold markings in the wings and under the tail during flight. Western birds have reddish or cinnamon markings. The dark bib and underpart spotting is prominent on both male and female birds, though only the male birds have the facial mustache. These are common birds throughout the eastern and southeastern United States and can be found in parks, forests, urban areas, and rural habitats. Female red-bellied woodpeckers have red at the base of the bill and at the back of the head. Both male and female red-bellied woodpeckers are one of the most common types of woodpeckers to visit backyard feeders. All woodpeckers eat nuts, including wild-grown acorns, hickory nuts, and beechnuts as well as peanuts offered at feeders. Suet, insects, and seeds are also preferred foods, as well as grape or apple jelly, orange halves, and nectar, which woodpeckers will sip right out of hummingbird feeders. These pied woodpeckers have a reddish crown on males. Females lack any colors other than black, white, gray, and buff. The upper parts are barred while the underparts are spotted. The undertail coverts are also barred but are more white than black, and the tail is solid black. The bold white wing bars; thick red, black, and white facial markings; and yellow wash along the sides, back, and abdomen make this one of the most colorful woodpeckers. These birds are well-known for their healthy appetite for acorns. And they will create granary trees to store nuts—thousands and thousands of them. These birds can be found year-round along the Pacific Coast from Oregon to Southern California. They are also widespread through central Arizona and New Mexico, with their range extending into Mexico.
