Monday, April 14, 2014

Night Birds and Sounds

Video Taken 3/31

In the search for an American Woodcock, the best time to go is at night.  While you can't see them you can hear them.  Finding a woodcock in the day can be hard, they are secretive quiet and like dense wood with lots of leaf cover.  They have the prefect camouflage for their environment as well and well adapted to it.  They have these great long beaks that are perfect for grabbing worms and grubs.  Despite being a shorebird, American Woodcocks are perfectly adapted to life in the middle of forests and leave piles.

If the Woodcock is so well hidden and hard to find, how does one go about seeing them?  Well, there is always the option of stumbling upon one by chance.  Most of the time, they are found by being flushed from a trail or a good grub eating spot.  But the best way to get a woodcock on your list is to hear them at night.  In early spring, at dawn or duck, you can go to a open field near some woods and hear the distinctive peent calls that males give during their flight displays to attract females.  I've captured some of these on video over the years, so please enjoy my clip and get out and go birding!

File:American Woodcock Scolopax minor.jpg
An American Woodcock in Montreal (C) guizmo_68

AllAboutBirds American Woodcock Entry - Link Here

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday

3 comments:

  1. ...and you found one!!!! I have spotted a snipe...quite similar, but not the same. LOL

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  2. Cool bird and awesome find! Great shot!

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  3. HI Brilliant bird shot. Your video is on private, you need to change it to Publlc for us to see it.

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