Woodpecker Bird Houses

Woodpeckers prefer a nest box with a roughened interior and a floor covered with a two-inch layer of wood chips or coarse sawdust. For best results, place woodpecker houses high up on a tree trunk exposed to direct sunlight.

The Downy Woodpecker occurs over the greater part of the North American continent, from the Gulf States northwards. The Downy Woodpecker is at home in a variety of wooded areas across its range, in the northern mixed forests and in the deciduous forests farther south, in woodlots and parklands, in orchards, and even in the parks and avenues of suburb, town and city. It prefers places where broad-leaved trees, such as poplars, birches and ashes, let in the light among the evergreens. Forest edges and areas around openings in the denser forests are also favored places. In the western part of its range it can be found in alder and willow growth. Downy Woodpecker pairs often return to the same nesting area every year of their adult life. Mount Downy Woodpecker houses high up on a tree trunk exposed to direct sunlight.

Red-headed Woodpeckers range from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast, east of the Rocky Mountains and west of New England. They are birds of wooded savanna, open woodlands, riparian forests, orchards, suburbia and agricultural lands. Preferred habitat includes dead trees for use as nest sites, relatively open undergrowth, and access to the ground for foraging. In the East, old mature woodlots with some undergrowth as well as suburbs and agricultural areas are typical redhead habitats, whereas in the South, clearings with tall stumps are used. Although uncommon throughout much of their range, Red-headed Woodpeckers are most abundant in the open forests of the Midwest. Mount Red-headed Woodpecker houses high up on a tree trunk exposed to direct sunlight.

The Hairy Woodpecker breeds from western and central Alaska, northern Saskatchewan and Newfoundland south throughout most of North America to Central America and the Bahamas. Winters generally throughout the breeding range, with the more northern populations partially migratory southward. The Hairy Woodpecker inhabits nearly all types of forest within its range, preferring bottomlands with large mature trees. Generally more abundant at the edge of woodlands. Although stable or increasing in numbers across most of the U.S., the Hairy Woodpecker has become rare and local in Florida and adjacent Georgia, where it continues to decline. In this region, the Hairy is found strictly in mature pine forests and strongly prefers recently burned areas. Natural wildfires play a vital ecological role in the southeastern U.S., and fire suppression by humans has made many species--including the Hairy Woodpecker--become threatened in this region. Mount Hairy Woodpecker houses high up on a tree trunk exposed to direct sunlight.