Dozens of shattered car mirrors; the culprit is not who you think

In an unusual type of car vandalism, someone was terrorizing community members by shattering their vehicle’s side-view mirrors.

This crime was occurring not at night, but in broad daylight.

Neighbors of the community in Gwinnett County, Georgia, thought it was likely kids with a BB gun or hammer.

“I’ve been hearing them, running up and down the creek behind my house,” one of up to two dozen neighbors affected by the vandalism told Atlanta’s WSB-TV.

Police were on the case, and they even sent more patrols into the neighborhood to watch for someone smashing in mirrors.

It wasn’t long before they caught the culprit red-“headed,” WSB-TV reported.

This was no teenager, criminal or angry citizen shattering the car mirrors.

It was a woodpecker. A woodpecker the size of a crow.

“The woodpecker was not actually trying to break the glass,” WSB-TV reported. “It saw its reflection and thought it was attacking another woodpecker.”

Homeowners in the area have resorted to covering their car’s mirrors with plastic bags to protect the glass.

This is their best option, as the pileated woodpecker with a vibrant-red head is a protected species.

This story was originally published October 25, 2017 at 2:58 PM with the headline "Dozens of shattered car mirrors; the culprit is not who you think."