Woodpeckers come by their name honestly- they love to drum, rap and tattoo on wood. As many readers know, they also peck on house siding, no matter what it is made of. If this happens to you, just put some aluminum foil on the impacted area- it will act like a mirror and deter Woody. Count yourself lucky if your only problem with woodpeckers is banging on your siding. The 1997 STS-70 space shuttle mission was delayed for a month by a single woodpecker attacking the foam insulation on its fuel tanks. The damage was so substantial – over 200 holes, that the space shuttle, set to launch the day before the holes were found, could not be repaired on the launch bay but had to be returned to the Vehicle Assembly Building. Biologists determined, after studying film from dozens of cameras observing the rocket, that one Northern Flicker was responsible for all the holes. The insulation was about 3-4 inches thick and the determined bird kept trying to find a place where he could get deeper to reach insects. Instead, he kept hitting aluminum. Towson based retired astronaut, Don Thomas, a mission specialist on STS-70, describes how frustrating it was for NASA to be outsmarted by a woodpecker in his memoir, Orbit of Discovery.

Marshy Point and Cromwell Valley Parks provides much more friendly natural habitat for 6 of the 7 woodpeckers found in Baltimore County. On a recent drizzly Sunday afternoon, led by park naturalist Laura Lechtzin, 4 of the 6 were spotted- northern flicker of NASA fame, yellow bellied sapsucker, male and female red bellied woodpeckers, and a male hairy woodpecker. Lechtzin educated us as we hiked. Woodpeckers have chisel like beaks and small facial feathers to keep wood chips out of their eyes and nose. Long tongues allow access to larvae deep in cracks and the tongues have a barb on the end to hold onto prey. Their toes are zygodactyl- two facing forward and two facing backwards so they can perch perpendicularly on trees. The toe architecture also helps them hold on while they are drumming. They have a strong stiff rear tail that acts like the spoiler on a race car to keep them stable by balancing the force applied by their head.

Do woodpeckers get concussions or CTE from all that banging? No. Their skulls are designed to absorb shock. The lower beak is longer than the upper which helps divert force downward. The skulls are made up of uneven spongy plates and the brain is encased in its own seatbelt like hyoid bone to keep it from sloshing around. Some scientists differ and believe woodpeckers just are tougher than humans.

Downy woodpeckers are the tiniest members of the species weighing less than one ounce. Their light weight, however allows them to feast on protein snacks that larger woodpeckers cannot access. For example, the goldenrod gall fly, a species of fruit fly, forms a hard knot on the stalks of goldenrod when it lays its eggs. The downy woodpecker can perch on the stalks in winter even when they are brittle and dried out and get the larvae inside the stalk. The largest woodpecker is the Pileated (from the Latin pileatus meaning capped). These iconic birds make rectangular shaped openings in trees. The Northern Flicker, in addition to its love of spaceships, also seeks food on the ground, not just in trees. This makes it vulnerable to sharp shinned hawks and other raptors.

Try to remember, when the rapping is driving you crazy if it is on your house (or spaceship), that it is natural noise, not anthropogenic like a leaf blower or lawn mower. Woodpeckers are a keystone species and the drumming (up to 20 times a minute) is how they mark territory and attract mates. The drumming creates habitat for themselves and many other nondrilling creatures. They control insect pests such as wood boring beetles. Their antics delight birdwatchers of all ages and they are cultural icons. The woodpecker beleaguered space shuttle mission adopted the woodpecker as its mascot and the astronaut’s mission patches paid homage to woodpeckers. If they are still annoying you, consider making a “bongo box” out of wood. Just like what it sounds, bongo boxes provide an alternative location, near but not on your house, that woodpeckers will prefer. Plans are widely available online.