Woodpecker decoy in Aberystwyth Road

Image: © Natasha Ceridwen de Chroustchoff Taken: 18 Mar 2016

A surprising sight was this large woodpecker on a utility pole but it rapidly become apparent it's a decoy placed there (it seems) to deter the real birds from damaging the pole. Woodpecker damage to utility poles in the USA makes for serious financial cost in maintenance and replacement, as well as a hazard for workers. Attempts to deter woodpeckers with barriers or chemical deterrents have proved ineffectual and as they are a protected species they cannot be destroyed. Read about it here (http://www.ericlwalters.org/harnesswalters2004.pdf ) The only other example of the use of woodpecker decoys in the UK that I have found is in Cumbria but there seems to be no evidence they actually work.

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