I live in a tan painted cedar sided house. There are a couple of small grey & white wood pecking birdsthat are pecking holes into my house siding in two or three different places. How do I stop them?
From what we can tell, there are no bugs where they are pecking into the house but they keep it up (except for in the bitterest part of winter). It seems like the best advice I have found is to cover the hole, which we have done, and they just find a new place a few inches over. However, in my reading up on this I was shocked to find out that disturbing a woodpecker den or killing one is a federal offense. What?! Not that I plan on killing them, but disturbing them? I want to disturb them!
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 prohibits the removal of all listed species or their parts (feathers, eggs, nests, etc.) from such property. However, in extreme circumstances, a federal permit might be obtained for the relocation of listed species (in some states a state permit is required in addition to a federal permit). Pursuant to the spirit of the treaty, it is not trivial to obtain a permit; the applicant must meet a certain criteria as outlined in Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, 21.27, Special Purpose Permits.
And wouldn't you know that the downy woodpecker, the little knucklehead that is making holes in my house, is protected under that treaty. For crying out loud...
Wow! What a cute little annoying neighbor you have there! Our neighbor was having trouble with some birds last year and put up a fake lawn statue of an owl. she hung it in a nearby tree along with some windchimes. It seems to have done the trick. Maybe it could help you??
ReplyDeleteI should give that a try! I love the sound of wind chimes too so that would be a bonus. Now I just need to go find a mean looking owl...
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