Woodpecker destroying my blue tit box, why?

[WoodPeckerPeck]

does anyone know why they do this? It’s pecked the hole until it’s big enough to fit through and pulled all the old nest out. Is it just that it’s after flies/bugs? There’s nothing nesting in there and hasn’t been for months. I’ll get a metal thing to go over it, but kind of like the idea of having a woodpecker nesting in view 😁 I’ve got a very bad quality video if anyone is really needy and wants to see :)

Ikd like to see the recording, no idea why it would do that tho. I’m watching a New Holland Honeyeater nesting at the moment.

@Had2Be can I send it privately somehow?

I’ve no idea how you would be able to do it.

They do it in the nesting season to eat the nestling. Not sure at this time of year, maybe just confused? Depending on species (I assume Great Spotted Woodpecker?) they nest in holes they excavate themselves in decaying wood, and are very unlikely to use the box to nest.

It is quite likely that it is looking at the box as a nesting site for next season, they excavate holes in trees and will excavate the old nest in the same way. If you don't want it in there then you can buy metal hole reinforcers to stop it from enlarging the entrance.

To get at the baby birds, not that there were any in there. Also there will definitely have been some bugs in there.