Northern Flickers and Woodpeckers Damaging Montana Homes

Which woodpeckers damage buildings in western Montana?

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) lists ten woodpecker species in the state: downy, hairy, three-toed, black-backed, pileated, Lewis's and red-headed woodpeckers, red-naped and Williamson's sapsuckers, and the northern flicker. The Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management (ICWDM) names the flicker, the downy, the hairy and the pileated among the species most often involved in damage to homes.

The flicker is the one most Missoula and Bitterroot Valley owners meet. The Montana Field Guide describes it as a medium-sized, grayish brown woodpecker with black spots below, a black crescent on the upper breast and a white rump patch that shows in flight. It rates the species common, widely distributed and stable in Montana, and notes that it prefers forest edge and open woodland, including cottonwoods along rivers. That is a fair description of a lot of valley home sites.

Why is a woodpecker hammering on my house?

FWP sorts woodpecker noise into three categories: advertising, feeding, and excavating a nest or roost hole. Telling them apart is the whole diagnosis.

Drumming is advertising. FWP describes it as a very rapid, rhythmic burst on wood or metal, made by both males and females to establish territory and attract a mate. The bird picks whatever resonates best, which now includes siding, downspouts, gutters, chimney caps and roof flashing. It starts at dawn and can go on for days or months. FWP says it causes little or no damage. It is a noise problem.

Feeding looks different: slower, irregular pecking that leaves holes. Nest and roost excavation leaves the largest ones. FWP notes that a woodpecker may start a hole, abandon it, and begin another only inches away, so one bird can leave a line of half-finished cavities in a gable.

When is woodpecker season in Montana?

ICWDM reports that most building damage occurs from February through June, which matches the breeding season and the period when territories are set, and again in fall when birds disperse and establish territories. Damage typically involves only one or two birds.

For flickers specifically, the Montana Field Guide records egg dates near Fortine in northwest Montana from late April to about June 10, with young in the nest from early May into early July. Treat that as a northwest Montana record and not a guarantee for your property. Our Montana bird nesting season calendar covers the wider picture.

Which siding and buildings are most at risk?

FWP says woodpeckers may damage homes made of wood, stucco and synthetic stucco, and names the most vulnerable sidings: cedar, especially natural or stained an earth tone, grooved plywood, tongue-and-groove, and aluminum or vinyl for drumming. Siding painted white, pastel or a bright color may be less attractive. ICWDM agrees that natural or stained wood is preferred over painted wood, and adds that houses with wooden exteriors in or beside woods are the likeliest targets.

ICWDM also points to buildings nobody is watching. Vacation homes that sit empty part of the year, barns and other wooden outbuildings can take severe damage because it goes unnoticed. That describes plenty of cabins, log homes and hay barns from Lolo to Darby.

Are woodpeckers protected in Montana?

Yes. FWP states that woodpeckers, like all native birds for which there is no hunting season, are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and that trapping and shooting are not permitted. The Montana Field Guide flags the northern flicker as a Migratory Bird Treaty Act species. FWP adds that once woodpeckers have eggs or young, it is illegal to remove them from the nest or to scare the adults away.

FWP also explains that lethal removal is possible only under a special permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and that a permit will not be issued unless exclusion and deterrence were attempted first. That is a federal decision and not something a contractor can shortcut. Our guide to migratory bird depredation permits in Montana explains the process, and Montana bird nest removal law covers nests generally.

What actually stops them?

Netting hung off the wall is the method both sources rank first. FWP and ICWDM give the same specification: lightweight bird netting with a three-quarter-inch mesh, held at least three inches away from the siding so the bird cannot work through it, usually attached at the eave and angled back to the wall below the damage. It has to be taut and closed at the edges so no bird gets behind it. ICWDM calls nets one of the most effective methods and says a properly installed net is barely visible from a distance. That is the kind of bird netting and exclusion work we install.

Speed matters as much as the product. FWP's first rule is prompt action, because a bird that has used a spot briefly leaves more readily than one that has used it for days. Both sources say to repair holes quickly and completely. ICWDM notes that the sight of existing holes may stimulate more, and FWP warns that an unrepaired hole can be taken over by starlings or house sparrows. Metal flashing or quarter-inch hardware cloth over the pecked area is ICWDM's interim cover. The siding repair itself is a job for a carpenter or siding contractor.

Moving, reflective visual deterrents are the supported short-term tool. ICWDM reports that one reflective tape product eliminated woodpecker damage at half the homes tested in a northeastern U.S. study. For drumming, FWP's advice is to remove the sound: secure loose boards, fill behind boards that ring hollow, and temporarily pad metal such as a chimney cap.

What does not work?

FWP is direct that scare tactics generally work for only a few days before the birds learn they are harmless, which is why it tells owners to vary them and keep at it daily. ICWDM says frightening devices often fail and nets may have to be installed anyway.

The sources disagree slightly on predator decoys. FWP says a plastic owl or a falcon silhouette has had some success. ICWDM says stationary hawk, owl, snake and cat models are usually ineffective, and that balloons painted with owl eyes were not effective in trials. High-frequency sound devices rarely perform as advertised, and FWP says chemical or odor repellents have generally proven ineffective. ICWDM also cautions that sticky gel repellents can entrap small birds. More on this in do bird scare devices work.

Does the damage mean insects in the wood?

Sometimes. FWP says woodpeckers can damage houses when seeking insects, that a bird will be persistent once it has a feeding area, and that an insect problem should be dealt with before trying to exclude the bird, possibly by a professional exterminator. ICWDM describes one recognizable pattern: narrow horizontal lines of damage along the grooves of plywood siding, where the bird is breaking into gaps in the core that harbor insects.

But ICWDM is equally clear that woodpeckers often attack siding that is sound and insect free, so holes alone do not prove an infestation. A row of small feeding holes deserves a look by a pest professional. A single large round hole high on a gable is more likely a nest or roost attempt.

What should you do this week?

Note the time of day, the sound and where the holes are, then act before the bird settles in. Our bird mitigation assessment identifies which of the three behaviors you have, and we net the wall when netting is the answer. Dead trees are where flickers normally nest, so if a snag near the house needs a decision, our arborist can weigh that under tree services. Other species are covered in the Montana Bird Control Guide.

Call HJ Property Care & Tree Service at (406) 215-7319 or request a bird assessment and we will identify the species, the access points, and what will actually stop them.

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