By Sid Perkins
If you live in a house with wood siding—or in a log cabin—you might need protection from a little-recognized but destructive avian threat. “Woodpeckers cause millions of dollars in damage each year to homes and buildings across the United States,” says Jim Tassano, a pest-control specialist in Sonora, Calif. That damage typically results from the birds hammering to find food, to make a nest, or to attract a mate.
Killing the birds isn’t legal because all woodpeckers in the United States are protected by law. Also, inflatable owls, fake snakes, and similar devices rarely work against persistent woodpeckers.