I heard this weird tapping sound around the outside of the house. This woodpecker is chipping away at mortar between my bricks. I don't want to shoot him (I'd use a bb gun it's a residential area) but how do I get rid of him? He's legit making some progress chipping away mortar in spots. I've never seen anything like this shit before. He's not even that high up. I chased him off yesterday but heard him again today watering the grass in my back yard.
It's likely one of two things - there's bugs there, or it's breeding season, and he likes the sound your walls make when he pounds on them. Making noise by tapping loud things is part of their courtship behavior.
He's a good bird, just trying to get some tail or some lunch, like the rest of us.