My cheap suet feeder was scaring off the woodpeckers for 8 months

I hung a wire mesh suet cage off my maple tree last spring and wondered why I only got house sparrows. One morning I watched a downy woodpecker land on it, take one peck, and fly off like it was electric. Turns out the cage had a thin metal rim that rattled and clanked every time a bird landed. I swapped it for an old wooden log with drilled holes, stuffed it with homemade suet, and within 4 days I had two red-bellieds and a flicker showing up daily. Anyone else had hardware scare off the birds? What did you switch to?

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michael_coleman101mo ago

Sounds like the rattle scared them more than the cage itself, since woodpeckers use the noise to check for danger.

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