Hairy woodpeckers (Picoides villosus) are medium-sized woodpeckers found throughout forests of North America. They are opportunistic feeders, known to eat insects, seeds, sap, and fruit. Hairy woodpeckers have also been observed drinking nectar from flowers, so it’s reasonable to wonder if they might also drink from hummingbird feeders. In this article, we’ll explore what’s known about hairy woodpecker feeding behavior to try to answer the question.
Overview of hairy woodpeckers
The hairy woodpecker is a black and white woodpecker measuring 7-10 inches in length with a wingspan of 13-17 inches. Males have a red patch on the back of the head while females do not. They are found year-round across most of North America in wooded areas, parks, and suburban backyards.
Hairy woodpeckers mainly eat insects, especially the larvae of wood-boring beetles. They use their stiff tail feathers to brace themselves vertically against tree trunks and dig into bark or rotten wood to find insect prey. They also hawk flying insects, probe into galls, and feed on ants by lapping them up with their long tongue.
In addition to insects, hairy woodpeckers will eat fruits, nuts, and seeds. Their diet varies seasonally, consuming more plant material in fall and winter. Sap from trees such as maple and birch are also an important food source year-round.
Tools and feeding behavior
Hairy woodpeckers have several specialized tools and behaviors for finding and accessing food:
- Chisel-like bill for excavating into wood
- Stiff tail feathers to brace against vertical surfaces
- Long tongue with barbs to lap up ants and termites
- Feet with 4 toes, 2 pointing forward and 2 backward for gripping
- Feeding behaviors like drilling, pecking, prying, and tapping to find insects
- Ability to hang upside down and sideways to access food
These adaptations allow them to find food in the small cracks and crevices of tree bark. Their feeding habits require them to be agile, nimble, and comfortable feeding at all angles.
Do hairy woodpeckers visit hummingbird feeders?
There are some reports of hairy woodpeckers feeding from hummingbird feeders, though how commonly they do this is unknown. Here are some considerations:
Beak shape
Hummingbird feeders are designed to accommodate the long, slender beaks of hummingbirds. In contrast, woodpeckers have shorter, chisel-shaped beaks adapted for boring into wood. So their beak may not fit well into hummingbird feeder ports.
However, hairy woodpeckers do have fairly long tongues with barbs on the end, which helps them lap up sap and ants. Their tongue could allow them to reach nectar in hummingbird feeders.
Food preferences
Woodpeckers prefer insects, sap, nuts, and fruit over nectar. While they will occasional drink flower nectar, nectar is not a primary food source as it is for hummingbirds. So they may not be as attracted to sugary liquid feeders.
Feeding behavior
Hummingbirds can hover in place to feed, but hairy woodpeckers cling to vertical surfaces to eat. They are not adapted to feeding while hovering. They would need a place to perch near the feeder to feed.
Size and weight
At 7-10 inches long, hairy woodpeckers are much larger than hummingbirds. Their greater size and weight could make it difficult to balance on small perches meant for tiny hummingbirds.
However, they are agile climbers on vertical surfaces and may still be able to figure out a way.
Territoriality
Hummingbirds are very territorial around their feeders. Their aggressive behavior may deter larger woodpeckers from approaching.
But woodpeckers also defend their own territories, especially in nesting season. A hairy woodpecker may not back down from a small hummingbird if it wants access to the feeder.
Evidence of woodpeckers at feeders
There are some anecdotal reports online and in birding forums of people spotting hairy woodpeckers drinking occasionally from hummingbird feeders.
So while it doesn’t appear to be common behavior, they likely will drink nectar from feeders if they come across them within their home range. There are also reports of other woodpecker species like downy woodpeckers accessing feeders.
Advantages and disadvantages of woodpeckers at feeders
Allowing woodpeckers to access hummingbird feeders could provide some benefits but also some drawbacks:
Potential advantages
- Additional species diversity in your backyard
- Opportunity to observe interesting woodpecker behavior up close
- Woodpeckers may deter squirrels and other nectar robbers
Potential disadvantages
- More competition for the hummingbirds
- Woodpeckers may damage feeders with their claws and beaks
- Could frighten hummingbirds away from the feeder
- May increase risk of spreading diseases between species
Whether the pros outweigh the cons depends on your goals for your backyard habitat. Attracting both woodpeckers and hummingbirds can increase biodiversity. But if you want to specifically cater to hummingbirds, having woodpeckers steal nectar may be undesirable.
Tips for deterring woodpeckers from feeders
If you want to discourage woodpeckers from using hummingbird feeders, here are some methods to try:
- Use a feeder with short perches too small for woodpeckers
- Position feeders far away from trees or other perches
- Coat perches with cooking oil or chili pepper gel
- Use feeders with specialized “bee guards” to limit access
- Scare them away with noisemakers or sprinklers when spotted
- Block access to feeder ports with corks or pieces of wood
- Take feeders inside at night when woodpeckers are most active
Deterrents may need to be combined and moved around to prevent woodpeckers from getting habituated. Persistent woodpeckers are clever at figuring out ways around obstacles.
Providing alternative food sources for woodpeckers
Another option is to provide an alternative food source just for woodpeckers away from the hummingbird feeders. Some ideas include:
- Suet feeders – offer high-fat suet, nut butter, or insect suet blocks
- Fruit feeders – chop up apples, oranges, berries
- Nectar feeders – make a diluted nectar solution of sugar water
- Nut feeders – peanuts, sunflower seeds, cracked corn
- Sap wells – drilled holes filled with sap substitutes
This may satisfy the woodpeckers’ nutritional needs while allowing the hummingbird feeders to be reserved just for the hummingbirds. Having multiple feeding stations can let you observe a wider variety of bird species.
Conclusion
While hairy woodpeckers are not frequent visitors at hummingbird feeders, they do occasionally drink from them. Their long tongues allow them to reach the nectar, but their beaks and bodies are not adapted for this type of feeding.
Woodpeckers at feeders can be an interesting behavior to observe, but may negatively impact hummingbird access. Various deterrents and alternative food sources can be used to redirect woodpeckers away from hummingbird feeders if desired. With some strategic feeding stations, both species can be accommodated in a backyard habitat.