Rockport residents have a history of fighting off invaders, but not this time.
During the War of 1812 between the US and Britain, townsfolk in the tiny fishing village hurled rocks at British soldiers using their stockings as slings. Now, they are slinging trash bags and towels over the side mirrors of their vehicles to protect them from a destructive and determined pileated woodpecker.
Over the past few weeks, the bird has broken more than two dozen mirrors and at least one vehicle’s side window, but residents are taking the damage in stride.
Photo: AP
“Everybody’s having a good laugh about it,” Ben Favaloro said. “Nobody wants harm to the bird. He’s always welcome back.”
Favaloro, who has lived in the neighborhood for about four decades, said he has seen the occasional woodpecker on the side of houses in years past and he removed several trees last summer that were damaged beyond recovery.
However, the attacking of glass is a new phenomenon.
“Initially, we just noticed that all the mirrors had been adjusted. It looked like maybe there’s a child in the neighborhood that was going around pushing the mirrors down,” he said.
However, his sister-in-law spotted the roughly 53cm-tall woodpecker on Favaloro’s truck, pecking at the side mirror.
Given their enormous size, piliated woodpeckers are strong enough to break mirrors, but such behavior is “definitely weird,” said Pamela Hunt, senior biologist for avian conservation at the New Hampshire Audubon.
“Lots of birds will be aggressive against reflections in mirrors, but I don’t usually hear about woodpeckers,” Hunt said. “They don’t usually peck at their opponents, they kind of chase them around.”
The woodpecker might be “a little stupid” and is trying to defend its territory and scare away what it sees as competition, she said.
The damage coincides with the mating season for pileated woodpeckers and resident Barbara Smith said she would be fine with “lots of little woodpeckers” around, though she hopes they would not be as destructive.
“Woodpeckers have to do what woodpeckers do,” she said. “Good luck, woodpecker.”
The woodpecker and the media attention it has attracted has been a fun distraction from everything else going on in the world, Favaloro said.
“This small town of Rockport that I live in is one of the safest communities around,” he said. “I think this is probably one of the biggest crimes in years. It’s kind of funny, but it’s nice as well.”
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