Key Features
- Rows of 1/4 inch-holes
- Flagging branches
Symptoms
The yellow-bellied sapsucker is the only member of the woodpecker family known for its boring of numerous holes in the bark of live plants to obtain sap. More than 250 species of woody plants are known to be attacked. Sapsucker damage is easy to identify: Holes are one-quarter inch in diameter in horizontal and vertical rows, close together. This is often mistaken for insect damage (e.g., bark beetles or borers). Insect damage usually results in fewer, smaller, randomly distributed holes.
Biology
Sapsuckers are actually drilling for the plant sap, not for insects in the plant.
Management Recommendations
To discourage sapsuckers from feeding on a favorite shade plant, wrap hardware cloth or burlap around the area being damaged.Once the feeding period has passed, remove the wrap from the plant. Bird netting may protect smaller shrubs. Frightening devices such as reflective mylar strips and fake owls that display movement have had some success at scaring sapsuckers away from a particular plant or area for a short period of time. Sapsuckers, woodpeckers, and all songbirds are protected by the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act, meaning it is illegal to injure or kill these birds.
Effective Pesticides
Pesticides are neither available nor recommended for managing this condition.
Resources
- Not satisfied with ID? Contact the Purdue Plant and Pest Diagnostic Lab
- Sign Up for the Purdue Landscape Report
