Derek, could it be borer beetles? My understanding of woodpecker damage is
that they only damage trees that already have insects in the bark.

FWIW, I noticed a hole in the CCA- treated lumber on the underside of our
deck a few years back. It was about the size of a pencil, and I squirted it
with wasp and hornet killer. Yup- soon there were several dead wasps laying
on the ground under the hole. I had not been aware that they would bore
into CCA-treated lumber, but they sure as heck did.

Try spraying a hole or two with bug killer and see if it produces anything.
Hopefully, it won't harm the tree. From what we saw after the ice storm,
your Bradford Pear must be one of the few surviving ones in the Triangle.
grin

--

Tom Gauldin, Las Vegas NV
NEW EMAIL
NEW PHONE (702) 263-8804 voice/fax

"Derek Mark Edding" wrote in message
...
Hi Folks,

While doing yardwork yesterday, I happened to notice a strange pattern
on the trunk of the large Bradford Pear tree we have in our front yard.
This tree is about 12 years old, less than a foot through at the
thickest part.

Anyway, what I noticed was that there were literally thousands of holes
through the bark of the tree, evenly spaced in circles all the way
around the trunk. They start at ankle height and go higher than my
head, where the lowest branches start.

They're about the size of a pencil eraser and go in maybe twice as deep.
It looked as if there wasn't even a square inch without this pattern
of holes in it over the entire main trunk.

The tree doesn't appear to be sick otherwise. It blooms completely
every year - in fact it's in bloom right now. Up until the big ice
storm in December it hadn't lost any branches, other than the low ones
I've trimmed. During the ice storm it lost a few large branches from
higher up, but it still looks full and healthy.

I'm not sure the damage was done by a woodpecker because I haven't seen
it happening, but the regular pattern makes me think that's what it is.
It's taken less than a year because I look at this tree fairly often,
and this is the first I've noticed it. When I was clearing away the
broken branches in December I didn't see them.

I'm wondering if the tree is likely to die from all this damage, and if
anyone can confirm that there are neurotic, single-track minded
woodpeckers that do this!

Thanks,

-dreq