How To Attract The Downy Woodpecker To Your Backyard
The downy woodpecker is the smallest and yet it is the most common woodpecker in the United States. It is found throughout North America and is an excellent site to see fluttering through your backyard. In order to attract the downy woodpecker to your home, consider the investment in a quality sunflower feeder. They will continuously come to visit you if you provide these birds with a regular supply of their favorite foods.
Choosing the Right Sunflower Feeder
A wide range of sunflower feeder products are on the market that can work well, but there are a few things to remember before you buy these, in particular for the downy woodpecker.
- This particular woodpecker will dine mostly on insects or black oil sunflower seeds from feeders, but it will do well with suet bird food, too. You can choose both to place in your yard. We recommend both suet and black-oil sunflower seeds for optimal results!
- Keep in mind that the downy woodpecker loves to eat insects. Purchase a bird feeder you can mount near wooded areas so that they have a regular supply of the food they love.
- When these birds create a nest, the male will usually try to create a cavity in dead wood, or dead portions of living trees. If you have an old woodpile, place your bird feeder in this area. These birds have four to five white eggs per clutch.
- Its food source must be approximal to its living quarters. Choose a sunflower feeder that hangs from a tree branch or set up a pole nestled into the wooded area for the best results.
Choose a bird feeder to supplies several areas for the bird to cling and hang. These birds are able to hang upside down and they will enjoy a bird feeder that gives them plenty of space to do this. In addition to other bird foods, one must definitely include suet in the woodpecker diet. Therefore, attempt to select a sunflower feeder with a suet cage below it. This will keep the Downy Woodpeckers in your yard on a regular basis.
It is important to note the Downy Woodpecker likes to eat insects. Avoid using chemicals on grasses and in wooded areas that would decrease the availability of insects as this will hold back these woodpeckers from calling your area home. The sunflower feeder will lure these birds to your garden, but the woodpeckers will diversify their food source.
