Woodpecker problems - advice needed please!

[tgr]

Unusual one, this. We have a woodpecker in the garden which has decided it would be a good idea to drill into the chimney pot. We hear it every morning and the vibration is transmitted down the chimney.

I'm concerned that gradually it will weaken the chimney pot and cause some damage, so I would like to discourage it in some way. There are plenty of trees around but it seems to have decided that it prefers ceramic. The chimney is three floors up and difficult to access.

Any ideas? Thanks a lot!

[sunnygym]

Air rifle?

Seriously though, maybe a model of a male woodpecker would put it off?

[blueedge]

With it being spring time I'd hazard a guess that the woodpecker is probably tapping as a territorial thing to other woodpeckers and to attract a mate. The best thing to do would be get a hawk or owl decoy and put it nearby as that should scare it off, if you do go down that route be sure to move the decoy from time to time so the woodpecker doesn't realise what you're doing.

[blueg33]

blueedge said:

With it being spring time I'd hazard a guess that the woodpecker is probably tapping as a territorial thing to other woodpeckers and to attract a mate. The best thing to do would be get a hawk or owl decoy and put it nearby as that should scare it off, if you do go down that route be sure to move the decoy from time to time so the woodpecker doesn't realise what you're doing.

^^^^^ is a good idea


"air rifle" isn't"

[ColinM50]

C'mon, it's a woodpecker fer chrissake, give the poor little thing a break and leave him alone. As others have said it's the mating season, he'll soon stop once he gets his leg (wing?) over.

[markbigears]

what type of woody is it?

[tgr]

Thanks for the replies and ideas. I'm sympathetic too and of course would like to deter the poor thing as smoothly as I can. No idea what kind it is, I love animals but I'm no twitcher

[Vron]

Have you actually seen it? Jackdaws are nesting in chimneys around this time and they are noisy buggers. How does the woodpecker hold on to the chimney whilst it pecks at it?

[Wings]

tgr said:

Unusual one, this. We have a woodpecker in the garden which has decided it would be a good idea to drill into the chimney pot. We hear it every morning and the vibration is transmitted down the chimney.

I'm concerned that gradually it will weaken the chimney pot and cause some damage, so I would like to discourage it in some way. There are plenty of trees around but it seems to have decided that it prefers ceramic. The chimney is three floors up and difficult to access.

Any ideas? Thanks a lot!

Got the same problem, every morning at 6 am, although i think mine is a Jackdaw.

[FurtiveFreddy]

Much more likely to be Magpies/Jackdaws/Crows than a woodpecker (unless you've actually seen it of course).

[tgr]

I'm not an expert but I've been told it's a woodpecker. The regular rhythmic drilling sound is also rather distinctive (but not, I accept, completely categorical)

[R300will]

blueg33 said:

blueedge said:

With it being spring time I'd hazard a guess that the woodpecker is probably tapping as a territorial thing to other woodpeckers and to attract a mate. The best thing to do would be get a hawk or owl decoy and put it nearby as that should scare it off, if you do go down that route be sure to move the decoy from time to time so the woodpecker doesn't realise what you're doing.

^^^^^ is a good idea


"air rifle" isn't"

BB Gun?

[Munter]

Could you not surround the chimney with some bit's of wood? Act as a bit of a shock absorber.

Although the decoy idea sounds best.