Why Do Woodpeckers Peck on Trees?
Why Do Woodpeckers Peck on Trees? When a woodpecker pecks on a tree, it is usually searching for food. Using its strong, chisel-like bill, the woodpecker digs out wood-boring grubs and other insects living in the wood.
A sapsucker woodpecker drills for sap. It drills neat rows of holes in the bark of trees and drinks the sap that drips from the holes.
In the springtime, their loud drumming on dead tree limbs, telephone poles and roofs is a mating call. Drumming usually occurs on metal or wood resonant surfaces.
It may occur a numerous times during a single day, and last for days or months Woodpeckers also dig holes in the trunks of dead trees for their nests, and leave fine chips of wood on the bottom to cushion the white eggs.
Most woodpeckers live year-round in the same area. They are very persistent and not easily driven from their established territory.