here my woodpeckers are seasonal most move through here in the spring for the high country except i have a pair of Lewis's woodpeckers that nest here in the spring before they to to the mountains. then in the fall they move thru here before heading to the low country except a few downeys that stay part of the winter. When there are any woodpeckers i first put out the molded woodpecker blocks
in a wire cage and nuts raisens and sunflowers in spring
in fall the blocks again but also baked cornbread and homemade suet trays and one flicker loves the cracked corn and millet in a feeder. I think it's more weather and storms that affect me here as it hot and dry summers and cold and snowy winters.

Our woodpeckers love suet. Besides beef suet, we make our own stuff to put in a log plus cage-type feeders. We attract several Downies, a couple of Hairies, several Flickers, and one Red-belly. If you have woodies in your neighborhood, you should be able to attract them.

You've come to the right place. I've had seven species of woodpecker in my yard, and they all love the suet log. I have a horizontal log and a vertical log. Put the log somewhere that squirrels can't get to it (like on a pole with a baffle) but near a tree so the woodpeckers feel comfortable.

My woodpeckers are fairly picky and spoiled. I use Attractor peanut flavor suet. I use this year-round. It's really cute during nesting season because the parents will come fill up their beaks with suet to take back to the nest, and then the fledglings will come later.

Here's what my setup looks like, and a few of my visitors:

Pileated woodpecker:
{{!gwi}}

Northern flicker and downy:
{{!gwi}}

Yellow-bellied sapsucker:

Red bellied woodpecker:

Red-headed woodpecker (in the burr oak near the feeder):

Very beat up spot on the oak tree where all the woodpeckers like to land before flying over to the feeder:

And also the usual downies, hairies, plus nuthatches and chickadees. Put out your suet log, and the woodpeckers will come.

--
Liz in Bloomington, MN
Backyard weather and feedercam: http://www.overlookcircle.org
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Hi,

In my yard, virtually all of the woodpeckers head straight for the suet feeder. I have pure suet in a block form in a wire feeder. I have it handing off a tree to prevent squirrels and raccoons from getting to it. However, a hanging suet is not ideal, it's not so stable. i think the ideal feeder is a log type where the woodpecker can stabilize itself by having a place to rest their tail.

Put out several suet feeder should increase your chance of woodpeckers.

Paul

i make up homemade suet by mixing bacon grease or shortning mixed with peanut butter warmed up in the micro wave and stir in chopped nuts and raisens or currents and rolled oats and top it with some sunflower or safflower seeds. it hardens in a shallow plastic bowl i place the bowl on a platforn feeder with sides and the chickadees and woodpeckers perch on the sides or in the platform itself. I don't make it in summer cause it spoils or melts if not eaten up in a week or two. but keeps a long time in late fall or winter. I get acorn and downeys and lewis's and flickers mostly spring and fall.

suet feeders, peanut butter, tech 1-11 house siding (draws insects which draws peckers tapping on house), black oil sunflowers, elderberry and other fruit bushes are all magnets for woodpeckers.

Boy, gymell, those are some beautiful pictures!

I love woodpeckers. I'm in Northern California and my ladder-backed, acorn and downy woodpeckers love suet. So do chickadees and nuthatches. I have a simple $2.99 wire basket and add inexpensive peanut suet cakes regularly. I've used the cakes labeled berry and woodpecker as well, but I think I have the best luck with just plain peanut cakes. Good luck -- it make take a bit of time before your woodpeckers notice, but they'll come around regularly once they discover your treats.

I am getting Downy and Red Bellied Woodpeckers by just feeding black oil sunflower seeds mixed with a little wild bird seeds.

I need to make up some suet cakes and get them out.

I haven't seen the Pileated in a long time.

I thought you weren't supposed to use bacon fat for birds because of the high salt content? Am I wrong?

Great pictures Gymell! Beautiful woodpeckers.

I get regular visits from Downy, Red-belly, and Hairy woodpeckers and occasional visits from Northern flickers on the suet log. It is pole-mounted with a squirrel/raccoon baffle. I built it 3 years ago and started making a home-made suet mixture with rendered suet, peanut butter, corn meal and flour, chopped nuts, etc. to fill in the holes. The woodpeckers love the home-made suet as well as many other birds, including Bluebirds.

I also have a suet cage filled with raw suet that hangs on the trunk of a large Pin Oak near the feeding station, and the woodies love that too.

Wow those are excellent pictures! Thanks for the encouragement, i went ahead and bought the feeder, no activity yet but im watching! I really look forward to seeing them soon!