American Woodcock

American Woodcock - Song and Dance

American Woodcock [Magalie St-hilaire Poulin Photo]

The American Woodcock (Scolopax minor) is an early spring migrant that we need to be watching for now.  Several people have reported seeing them around their houses or crossing roads or paths.

Woodcock are shorebirds and generally look like a round ball of feathers with a very long bill and short legs.  Their most outstanding feature is their large eyes which are positioned well up and back on their heads.  They are medium-sized, 28 cm/11 inches long including the long bill.  They have buffy-brown underparts and dark brown-gray streaked upper parts.  They have dark bars across the top and back of their head which run crosswise rather than lengthwise like other shorebirds, including the Wilson's Snipe which they might be mistaken for.  The bill is a dull yellow with a black tip.  Both males and females look alike.

American Woodcock [Internet Photo]

What about the 'song and dance' mentioned in the title?  Well, woodcock actually do dance, sing (to a limited extent) plus they perform a wonderful aerial display called a sky dance.  The female woodcock is a lucky bird in that respect.  In wet fields that this species prefers especially where there are alders and other bushes, the males start performing in early spring.  They continue this well into summer.  The birds are not easily seen because they prefer dense cover and only are seen when they are flushed or when they come out into fields to perform.  

Male woodcock perform mainly at night and can be seen as dusk approaches or rarely on dull days.  They begin their performance on the ground by making a loud, nasal peent sound which is repeated several times (the song).  The male then takes to the air and flies in ever-increasing circles over the beginning point.   It climbs in this circular pattern until it reaches a very high point.  Often it is at a point where the setting sun shines on the bird.  While the bird is climbing the air moving through its wings makes a twittering sound.  At the zenith a metallic tinkling sound is heard and then the bird drops straight down to the beginning point, only to begin again.  Several males are usually in the same area performing for a female.

The female picks a male from this wonderful performance and breeding takes place.  The male exercises no commitment, however, with her.  She is then on her own to make her nest, lay her eggs and raise the young.  She builds her nest on the ground in an overgrown field.  She lays four buff or reddish brown eggs spotted with brown or purple and incubates them for 20 to 22 days.  Chicks leave the nest a short time after hatching.  They learn to feed themselves within a week.  

Woodcock feed by probing that long bill into soft mud.  There are sensors in the bill which enable them to find food.  They feed on earthworms and insect larvae.  They sometimes rock back and forth while feeding and it is thought that this behaviour causes the worms to move.  This rocking dance is very interesting to watch.  

The American Woodcock is an upland game bird in New Brunswick.  It is one of the prized birds for hunters using bird dogs.  Breeds that are commonly used are setters, Brittanys, spaniels, and pointers. The season is open in the fall.  

The American Woodcock is certainly an interesting species.  Its aerial display and its feeding dance are a real treat to watch.  If the bird is dancing across the road in front of you, you will wonder if it will ever make it to the other side.  The fact that the species exhibits no pair bonding is unique.  The males provide no parental care and seem only interested in performing aerial displays.  Keeping this up well past the time of rearing young is also interesting. 

This species is not easily seen since it is mainly nocturnal.  The aerial displays going on in spring are easy to locate if you look in a partially overgrown wet field in spring at dusk on a sunny evening.  Good luck. Finding them is well worth the effort.