Was sitting in a stand tonight and had one of these guys land in the tree 10 feet away and start pounding.

We hardly had any of them when I was a kid but they've made a nice come back.

I was afraid to look (then I was not) but thought I would before the thread got shut down. Did not know what you had encountered! Haha!

They're just the coolest birds. My brother was sitting in a stand one night and saw one fly right at a tree and vanish...next day he looked and found it was the woodpecker's roosting cavity.

I seen a lot of these over the years at different times they did seem to be on the thin side for a few years though. I used to call them 10 foot woodpeckers they were so loud. I even had a young one here at my house peeking away he was like an alarm clock. I thought God make him stop he is bothering me.LOL They are cool though and the things we see in the bush or even around our homes if they are off the beaten path are very interesting at times.

My dog would look at me when I put her out like woody was aggitating her also.LOL

Aren't they huge, pretty cool.JF

Don't let him see your bow. He'll think its a treat.JF JF

My brother found one dead with his bill stuck in the tree. We have quite a few here in SW Mi now. Used to only see them up north.

Those noisy buggers are fairly common here...

Have them here in Louisiana. While sitting on my bow stand this year one was working a tree near me and a Red Tail Hawk kept chasing him. Guess he was trying to get a meal.

I see them here in NY where they bore into the dying beech trees. They will bore a hole big enough to stand in to get the larvae in the trees. bvd

We have them in Florida they are Pileated woodpeckers. They do sound like they are knocking down the tree when they go to work on it.

Yep. Pileated woodpecker. One guy called them "the grandaddy of the woods". They can tear a dead tree apart pretty quick

Just saw one on last Wed when I was in my treestand. Pretty cool

If you're bored in a stand and one lands within earshot, just start rapping your jackknife against a dead limb, as loud as you can. They will usually come right over to investigate.

I love to see all the different birds while on the stand,makes bow hunting more special.Ron

I love to see all the different birds while on the stand,makes bow hunting more special.Ron

They love the sassafras berries in late summer.

I always thought Ivory billed woodpeckers here in the Delta of AR kind of taste like chicken!

Will and Maurice Thompson hunted Ivory-billed Woodpeckers. One of my sisters was telling me about a piliated that was waking her up every morning with its pecking on a dead tree. So, the idiot had her equally idiotic husband saw the tree down. I got so damn mad, I called them a couple of morons and said I wish the tree had fallen on both of them, lol!

Joe

Had one in the tree next to me as well Sat morning

Had on whacking a tree near me Sat. Sounded like someone pounding a hammer. The only birds I don't like when in the woods are the blue jays. They give you away every time.

I almost fell out of a tree once. One landed on a calm day a few feet away (unbeknown) to me and started pecking. Love 'em.

Two years ago I was in a Turkey blind and had two messing around like they were about to mate.

Bowmania

Been seeing a few around here lately. I didn't know I missed them until I heard that old, familiar "jack hammer" and distinct "scream". I'm glad they're back. They are a cool bird.

I have one visit a tree near me on one of my hunting locations everyday. You literally can set your watch by him. One of my favorite birds. Then the cardinals come in to signal the soon end to my daily hunt.

While hunting in MI. this year watched one and a squirrel jockeying for the rights to a tree for about 15 minutes. Squirrel finally quit when woodpecker started to time his dashes and his bill thrusts where getting to close for comfort. A great show and experience.

Carpenter ants make up 40% to over 90% of their diet. They will tear apart an entire snag when they get into an extensive nest.

You're fortunate to have such a close encounter, in my opinion. Here in Western PA, I've found them to be very skittish. There's nothing like the song of a Pileated Woodpecker.

I had a Pileated working over a big dead cottonwood about ten yds. from one of my stands every night a few yrs. back. Went out one evening and noticed he had managed to cut the tree in half about forty feet up! It was never very quiet sitting in that stand!

We have a few making a come back around our home NC. Sounds like a jack hammer when he is pounding for insects in tree bark! BIG Beautiful Woody Wood Pecker for sure!!

Very rare here in NJ when I was a kid. Quite common now. Made a great comeback but don't know why. Early on were confused with the Ivory-Billed which is now considered to be extinct. There have been reported sightings of the Ivory but none have been confirmed as far as I know. The Pileated sure does get one's attention when it's around.

We have them in Texas, great bird.

They're great in the wild, but they seem to ignore the tree's in my yard and go right for the wood siding on my house. Very annoying and causing a lot of damage as well.

The locals in Georgia I worked with called them hen peckers, I guessed that was because they are nearly the size of a hen.

Taste like chicken

Redheaded Pigeon

I had forgotten until I read a few posts that I saw a family of four including the mother sweep through a stand of plantation pine I was stump shooting in and start pecking...very neat...they were about 2/3 the size of mama! Only a few feet off the ground and close.

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