Sportsmen and birders alike marvel at the American woodcock, a.k.a. sky dancer, little lover of swamps or timberdoodle. A Bird of Many Names

Story By Deck Major than males but neither sex weighs Wide-set eyes and a long bill used more than 0.5 pounds. to probe earthworms from the soil he American woodcock is The literal translation of the wood - aid in the identification of the a bird of the eastern forests cock’s scientific name, Philohela of the United States and minor , is “little lover of swamps or American woodcock. Canada. Its range extends bogs.” Its common name in many parts westward through the east - of the state is “timberdoodle,” which snaps its bill shut and gingerly pulls eTrn half of most of the plains states and comes from its long, specialized bill its prize to daylight. These little guys a small part of eastern and gulf Texas. used to catch earthworms. Depending can eat almost two ounces of worms Woodcock are rotund, little birds upon time of year and local site charac - per day. In terms of numbers, this with mottled, brown, tan and blue col - teristics, 50-90 percent of a woodcock’s translates roughly to five juicy night - oration that blends perfectly with for - diet is earthworms. crawlers and about 40 smaller, est leaf patterns. They have short, Most often, woodcock are not far garden-variety worms. rounded wings for strong, but short, from moist, fertile soil. With their Woodcock spend their summers in flights in dense cover. Their eyes are extra-long, 2.5-inch bill (female’s bills northern New England and upper Mid - wide and set back on their heads, pro - are slightly longer), they probe the soil west states and Canada and they winter viding for a wide viewing angle that for food. The bird feeds by raising the primarily along the Gulf coast states aids in both land and aerial predator upper portion of the tip of its bill as it from South Carolina to eastern Texas. detection. Females are slightly larger probes. When it encounters a food Illinois then, is a mid-migration state. item, it eases the tip around an However, several woodcock do breed unlucky worm or invertebrate, then and nest in Illinois each spring. 2 / Outdoor Illinois October 2010 A woodcock’s mottled coloration helps it blend into the vegetation on the forest floor.

The male’s courtships display is a special show. Aldo Leopold, in his clas - sic book, “A Sand County Almanac,” called the display a “sky dance.” Wood - cock begin showing up in Illinois dur - ing spring in mid-February (hardly ) . r o j

spring weather to a hummingbird or a M k

swallow) and courtship displays begin c e D y

immediately. In fact, birds have been b o t o h

observed singing in 15-degree Fahren - P ( heit temperatures in areas with patches of deep snow. lasts for 30-60 minutes each evening, Bird in Trouble Males pick a spot in an open area or but it can go on all night during full- Many hunters and birders alike have brushy field, referred to as a singing moon situations. watched their favorite woodcock ground, for this courtship ritual. Often, Illinois woodcock don’t waste any coverts come and go. Woodcock do not singing grounds are a recent forest time and begin nesting in March. use mature forests; they need young clearcut, a power line right-of-way Usually, hens pick the edges of young, “shrubby” blocks of timber. These areas through a forest, an abandoned pasture second-growth woodlands that are are called early-successional forest or old field adjacent to forested land. usually 10-15 feet high, or abandoned stands. The life of a woodcock covert is Males fly to their singing ground just fields with annual weeds and no relatively short then at best, often no before dusk each night. To woo a overhead woody cover. Males share more than 20 years.

) female, the male stands on the ground no responsibility during nesting or Long ago, the natural disturbances . y h p a made by very hot fires killed trees and r and rotates, making a vocalization brood rearing. g o t o thus created forest openings and early- h called a “peent” every few seconds for Hens usually make a shallow depres - P r e l successional timber. As farms were d about 3-4 minutes. Then he takes off sion on the forest floor for a nest and a N f f into the wind, flying upward and may line it with a few leaves. Four eggs abandoned throughout much of the e J , r e l almost out of sight. As he rises, air rush - is the normal clutch size and eggs hatch upper Midwest, shrublands and wood - d a N f f ing through his wings makes a in about 20 days. Hens produce a single cock habitat also was created. Howev - e J y b whistling sound. At the top of his flight, brood each year, but will re-nest if a er, much of this land has been allowed o t o h

P it often appears as though he flies a first attempt is unsuccessful. to mature and is no longer preferred by ( rough figure-eight before descending. The precocial young woodcock woodcock. Even beavers created forest As he drops, another warble-like leave the nest, never to return, soon openings when they deserted their whistling vocalization is made. Unbe - after hatching. The main diet of hatch - well-engineered ponds and the dams lievably, he lands within feet of his lings is earthworms and other inverte - eventually broke. take-off spot and soon begins peenting brates and insects. In about two weeks, Now, Mother Nature creates early again. This courtship display usually they are flight capable. successional timber through natural dis - asters such as tornadoes, ice storms and ) . r

o hurricanes. However storms rarely j a M

k occur where desired or planned. The c e D

y best way to create early successional b o t o

h timber where it can be utilized by P ( breeding and migrating birds is to use silvicultural (forestry) methods. Timber harvests using professional forest methods of even-aged manage -

Woodcocks begin nesting as early as March, producing a single nest containing an average of four eggs.

October 2010 Outdoor Illinois / 3 ment can be used effectively to create ) . e quality woodcock habitat. Two different n 1998, Illinois hunters averaged d d o H

4.9 days afield in pursuit of wood - e methods of even-aged management are l

I e d A

best. The first is called a shelterwood cock and averaged less than two y b o t

cut. Usually, removal of trees occurs in birds per hunter per season. Most o h P two stages. The first stage involves cut - hunters reported that this was a ( ting trees for regeneration and the next “bonus” bird, taken while pursuing cut(s) involve removing competition either bobwhite quail or other more from remaining desirable trees. popular upland game. Since 1997, The other even-aged management the woodcock season in the Midwest method is called a clearcut where all has been 45 days with a daily bag trees are removed. When used in small limit of three. Two-thirds of Illinois stands of 5-20 acres, excellent herba - woodcock hunters reported that they ceous groundcover and subsequent usually, or always, used a dog. young forest sapling habitat is created when the forest canopy is either opened or removed using these harvest methods. The herbaceous groundcover and etal attitudes towards even-aged forest subsequent developing thick stand of management practices (i.e. clearcut - ) . y

d forest seedlings/saplings creates impor - ting) that create early successional habi - a

white-eyed vireo s s a

C tant habitat (called stem density) for tat will likely contribute to continual . K n

h other forest wildlife besides American declines in woodcock populations.” o J y

b woodcock. These areas are far from The plan specifically identifies that Illi - s o t o

h “biological deserts.” Wildlife nois needs to create 12,140 acres of P ( researchers have discovered a long list this habitat annually in order to stabi - of species that benefit when early for - lize current habitat declines. est succession vegetation is created, Woodcock have very specific food including white-tailed deer, ruffed and cover requirements: clearings of grouse, wild turkey, indigo bunting, scattered grass or annual weeds for prairie warbler, blue-winged warbler, courtship; young dense forests for nest - chestnut-sided warbler, yellow-breast - ing/brood rearing; young forests with brown thrasher ed chat, white-eyed vireo, blue-gray areas of fertile, moist soil composition gnatcatcher, rufous-sided towhee, for feeding; and, large fields (more northern cardinal, brown thrasher, than 3 acres) of scattered grass or great-crested flycatcher and the black- annual weeds for roosting. Providing and-white warbler. all stages of growth in our Illinois Unfortunately, timber harvest on forests creates habitat for wildlife public land is unpopular and has often species that need early successional been halted by well meaning but mis - forests, such as the timberdoodle. guided litigation. Authors of the 2008 If you would like to improve your “American Conservation Plan, a Summa - property for woodcock, consider con - ry of and Recommendations for Wood - tacting your district wildlife biologist. cock Conservation in North America” Often, as you profit from wood prod - state that, “loss and degradation of early ucts through either sawlogs or fire - successional forest habitat is believed wood production, a welcome bi-prod - to be the primary factor responsible for uct of your effort is the creation of these declines (1.8 percent decline per needed early successional forest habitat year in singing routes in the Central for a wide variety of wildlife species. Region since the mid-1960s).” They fur - The best friend of the American black-and-white warbler ther state “changes in land use and soci - woodcock may very well be a logging truck.

Early successional forests provide suitable habitat for woodcock and Deck Major is the DNR Region III/IV a diversity of other wildlife, Wildlife Biologist based in the Alton office. He may be reached at (618) 462- including deer, turkey and several 1181 ext. 144 or [email protected]. species of songbirds. 4 / Outdoor Illinois October 2010