oodcock WIN THE SOUTHEAST: Natural History & Management for Landowners

The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension Service

Woodcock IN THE SOUTHEAST:

Natural History and Management for Landowners

David G. Krementz1 and Jeffrey J. Jackson2

This publication has been made possible through a Wildlife Restoration program grant from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Division of Federal Aid. To learn more about the Wildlife Restoration program, visit: http://fa.r9.fws.gov/.

1 USGS-Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Warnell School of Forest Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-2152 Present address: Arkansas Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Biological Sciences, SCEN 617, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701 2 Warnell School of Forest Resources, the University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-2152

Contents Understanding Woodcock ...... 1 Why Do People Want Woodcock on Their Land? ...... 1 You May Have Woodcock on Your Land ...... 2 The Woodcock’s World of Worms ...... 3 Forest Type and Worms ...... 3 Weather and Worms ...... 4 Worms, Woodcock and Land-Use Practices ...... 4 Can Woodcock Overharvest Their Worms? ...... 5 The Woodcock’s Life Through the Year ...... 5 Spring Migration ...... 5 Nesting ...... 5 Fall Migration ...... 6 Winter in the South ...... 6 Woodcock Management ...... 7 Start With a Land-Use Inventory ...... 7 Protect or Create Daytime Cover ...... 8 Find and Maintain Daytime Hiding Places ...... 8 Land Management Practices That May Incidentally Help Woodcock ...... 9 Timber Management and Woodcock ...... 9 Clearcuts ...... 9 Shelterwoods and Seed Trees ...... 9 Postcutting Treatments ...... 9 Thinning the Forest ...... 10 Pine Monoculture and Woodcock ...... 10 Prescribed Burning in Pinelands ...... 10 Managing Open Lands for Woodcock ...... 12 Maintain Old Fields ...... 12 Pasture Management ...... 12 Mowing ...... 12 Tilling Fallow Croplands ...... 12 History and Future of Woodcock ...... 13 The Past and Future of Woodcock ...... 13 What Causes Woodcock Population Declines? ...... 13 American Woodcock Management Plan ...... 14 Literature Cited ...... 15 Suggested Readings ...... 15 Suggested Web Sites ...... 15 Acknowledgments ...... 16 Figures Figure 1. The male woodcock performs the sky dance...... 1 Figure 2. “Splash” is evidence of woodcock...... 2 Figure 3. A mixture of young pines, broomsedge clumps and bare patches makes this field popular with woodcock at night...... 2 Figure 4. A woodcock hides in a thicket...... 3 Figure 5. Probe holes are evidence of woodcock...... 3 Figure 6. Ideal woodcock habitat includes these features ...... 7 Figure 7. Cane thickets make excellent hiding cover for woodcock...... 8 Figure 8. A wet woods is often good woodcock habitat...... 8 Figure 9. Plugging a ditch can be a step in improving woodcock habitat...... 9 Figure 10. Pine monoculture makes poor woodcock habitat...... 11 Figure 11. Dense grass cover prevents woodcock from probing for worms...... 12 Figure 12. Burning in field or forest can make worms more accessible to woodcock...... 12 Figure 13. Eastern woodcock survey region and area covered by this bulletin ...... 13 Figure 14. Long-term trends and annual indices of the number of woodcock heard on the singing-ground surveys ...... 13 Figure 15. Indices of woodcock recruitment ...... 13 Additional Articles Hunting Woodcock ...... 4 Facts About American Woodcock ...... 6 Woodcock Recipe ...... 10 Understanding Woodcock This bulletin describes woodcock not common on impoverished lands. habits, habitat needs, and habitat They like the rich soils and thickets of improvements that can help landowners wide (usually more than 50 yards), increase woodcock numbers. This bul- moist bottoms, and springs associated letin is aimed primarily at the Carolinas, with permanent creeks. You may know Georgia, and northern Florida. from their sign and their song that The quail-sized woodcock seems a woodcock are there; you just can’t see peculiar bird. Unlike its sandpiper rela- them as they sit on the forest floor tives, the woodcock is a forest bird. It because they are such secretive birds, so spends its days hidden on the forest perfectly camouflaged. They add an air floor perfectly blended with dead leaves of mystery to special places on the land. by its camouflaged pattern of broken blacks and browns. Its eyes sit so far back on its head that a woodcock can see all around, including behind itself. Its long, pencil-thin beak has nerves out to the tip to help its owner locate prey below the soil. A woodcock can open its beak just at the tip while it is probing deep in soft soil. These specializations of the bill enable the woodcock to grasp earthworms, its favorite prey, and pull them from the soil. The woodcock stands on short legs positioned so far back on its body that it ambles about with an odd front-back bobbing gait. Perhaps because of the woodcock’s curious habits and mysteri- ousness, it has many names that describe its appearance and habits: bog borer, bog sucker, big eyes, swamp bat, mud bat, hokumpake, Labrador twister, whistler, marsh plover, big-eyed John, swamp quail, snipe, blind snipe, brush snipe, cane snipe, dropping snipe, forest snipe, owl snipe, wood snipe, hill partridge, night partridge, bec noir, becassé, night becassé, and the most common nick- name, timberdoodle. Why Do People A woodcock may announce its pres- Figure 1 Want Woodcock ence by bursting into flight at your feet The male woodcock performs when you least expect it. Being startled by the sky dance. on Their Land? a rising woodcock is a great thrill. How- To the naturalist and woods-wise ever, most of the time, the landowner landowner, the woodcock indicates appreciates this silent friend just through environmental quality. Woodcock are knowing that woodcock are there. Page 1 To the birdwatcher, the woodcock is Once on the ground, he starts the a fascinating bird to find because of its whole display over again. While he is on famous sky dance (Figure 1). Male the ground, females will visit the singing woodcock carry on their courtship activ- male. Many males would advertise their ities in open fields throughout most of wares, but these display grounds are a the year, although it is concentrated place for competition. The competition from late winter through early summer. is a cackle flight; competitors chase

Photo: Jeff Jackson The courtship behavior is complex. each other while calling back and forth. Figure 2 First the male woodcock enters a This system results in what behaviorists “Splash” is evidence “singing ground,” which is often a fallow call a lek. The lek is a place and process of woodcock. field or a recent clearcut. After landing in that determines who breeds. There still a relatively open spot in the field at dusk, remains some question about how the the male utters two calls, one right after lek operates in the case of woodcock, the other. The first call is the “tuko” call, but regardless, it is a fascinating ritual which is faint and can only be heard if to watch. you are quite close. The call that follows To the hunter, the woodcock is a is the nasal “peent,” which can be heard sporty game bird. Hunters like wood- for some distance. As the male calls, he cock because they are challenging to paces around in circles, so the peent call shoot, they hold well for pointing dogs, seems to rise and fall in volume. and they are fine table fare. Before After calling for a few minutes, the the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, male lifts off of the ground and spirals woodcock were often hunted at night. upward into his towering sky dance. As Hunters used torches to approach wood- he gains altitude, listen for a faint twit- cocks roosting on the ground in fields. A tering sound made by the wind whist- lone hunter could kill phenomenal num- ling past his three narrow outer primary bers of woodcock in a night. Today feathers. Once he reaches the peak of hunters seek woodcock during the day flight, about as high as you can barely in brushy fields and thick woods. The see in the darkening sky, he begins an woodcock’s habit of frequenting thick Figure 3 undulating flight in a large circle. Then cover, its sudden flush and its darting A mixture of young pines, you will hear his chirping call. After he flight make it a challenging quarry. broomsedge clumps and bare flies in circles for a while, the male will patches makes this field popular with woodcock at night. plummet back down to his little strut- You May Have Photo: David Krementz ting ground. Woodcock on Your Land Often landowners hope to attract woodcock and then find—to their sur- prise—woodcock are already there. A topographic map can help you locate wide (at least 50 yards) moist bottoms. Also check for springs and seepages flowing into creeks. If there are thickets in your bottomland fields and openings, examine the ground for the woodcock’s characteristic dropping or “splash.” If woodcock are using the thickets, you will see these telltale signs. Woodcock splash is about the size of a 50-cent piece. It is chalky-white with a dark Page 2 center (Figure 2). You may also find the leaves and convert them to litter in their little holes made by woodcock where burrows. So efficient are worms that they have been probing for worms. just a few individuals per square foot Another way for finding woodcock can consume up to half a ton of leaves is to go to potential roosting/singing per acre per season (Wilde 1958). grounds. These are 1- to 5-year-old Alder produces the clearcuts or other open brushy places best leaves to feed the near the wide bottoms. Visit the singing woodcock’s favorite ground just before dark and position worms. These leaves yourself where you can see the incoming are high in nitrogen woodcock against the darkening sky. and other elements You may also be fortunate to hear wood- that worms need. cock singing or peenting (Figure 3). It Pines produce the will be too late in the day for legal shoot- poorest litter of all. ing, but once you have located a roost- Presumably, the con- ing/singing ground, you can be sure version of native Photo: David Krementz those woodcock using the singing forests, especially bottomland hard- Figure 4 ground are hiding in nearby thickets dur- woods, to southern pines degrades A woodcock hides in a thicket. ing the day (Figure 4). woodcock and worm habitat. Pines tend to acidify the soil. As soils become more The Woodcock’s acid, worms decline. Worms become very scarce when soil pH is less than 4.5. World of Worms We cannot evaluate woodcock habi- tat by simply measuring the abundance Despite his docile look, the wood- of worms. Although about 300 kinds of cock is a voracious predator. For most of worms live in North America, any envi- his days, a woodcock eats worms— ronment usually has only two or three worms for breakfast, worms for lunch, species. Exceptional habitats may sup- worms for dinner. A woodcock without port as many as 15 species. Of these, worms is in big trouble. Worms can be woodcock will feed on only a few. astoundingly abundant in good soil— Some of the woodcock’s favorite hundreds or even thousands of pounds or worms in northern states are Aporrec- more to the acre. Of this total earthworm todea tuberculata, Lumbricus rubellus tonnage, some species live too deep for and Dendrobaena octaedra (Reynolds woodcock to catch. Understanding what 1977). Surprisingly, none of these three makes good earthworm habitat is basic favorite worms is native to America. All to helping woodcock. are introduced European species. A woodcock must find worms with- Apparently the woodcock’s original in an inch or two of the surface nearly worm foods have been replaced by a every day of its life. Woodcock also eat number of species introduced from Figure 5 certain insects and their larvae, but Probe holes are evidence Europe and elsewhere. worms are the main staple. And wormy of woodcock. A stunningly abundant worm in Photo: David Krementz habitat is where almost all their food is some places is the large nightcrawler found. Lumbricus terrestris. This worm, intro- Forest Type and Worms duced from Europe, has spread over vast Forest trees and soil type influence areas, but its spread has not been good the quality of worm habitat and, there- news for the woodcock; they rarely eat fore, the quality of woodcock habitat. this kind of worm. The woodcock’s Detritus-feeding worms, of the kinds world of worms has been changed. No that woodcock feed on, prefer a medi- one knows what has happened to the um-loamy soil. Earthworms eat fallen woodcock’s former favorite worms.

Page 3 HUNTING WOODCOCK Dogs Equipment Dogs are a must on To follow a dog in woodcock cover requires briar the winter grounds proof pants, heavy field coat and heavy waterproof because, in most cases, boots. Wear light leather gloves, protective eyeglasses southern woodcock densi- and hearing protection. Wear enough orange so your ties are low. Wandering hunting companions can see you. around the woods without Once in the air, the woodcock is a slow flier, com- a dog will likely prove fruit- pared with ruffed grouse or bobwhite quail. If you can less. Most woodcock keep calm, you have a good chance for a shot. hunters use pointing dogs Because woodcock are taken at close range, use open such as English, Gordon, bores and smaller gauge shotguns, 20 or 16 suit the Irish or Llewellyn setters; close quarters shooting that woodcock provide. Smaller English or French britta- shot sizes (7½, 8, 9) and low brass field loads are rec- Photo: Jeff Jackson nies; drathhairs; German ommended. Make sure your shotgun is plugged to hold shorthairs; and weimaraners. Some hunters use flushing no more than three shells. dogs such as springer, cocker or American spaniels; or Labrador or golden retrievers. The primary difference Don’t Shoot Too Many between these two basic dog groups for hunting wood- Having hunted a covert and bagging some wood- cock is that with pointers, the hunter stays out of the cock, we suggest that you not overhunt your new discov- heavy cover until a point is made. With flushing breeds, ery. Most woodcock hunters try to avoid shooting a covert the hunter follows the dog closely and “busts brush” with more than two or three times per year. Woodcock are the dog. The hunter reads the body language of the dog probably faithful to a particular location year after year. for clues that a flush is imminent. Hunting woodcock with Woodcock coverts are precious places; once you a flushing dog requires a high level of alertness because have a “trapline” of coverts to work during the season, woodcock take to the air with little warning. be careful whom you tell!

Unfortunately we know little about causes relocations of wintering wood- which species of worms woodcock eat cock. Their movements are generally when they are in the Southeast. local; at most, a few miles. During these times, woodcock suffer much predation Weather and Worms because the better covers are often inun- Weather affects worms. If surface dated with water and woodcock are soil is too cold or too hot, worms go forced into poor-quality cover. As floods deep. A soil temperature of 50° to 68°F recede, the woodcock fly back to their old is about right for most of the wood- haunts. The worms survive the flooding. cock’s favorite worms (Edwards and Bohlen 1996). During the southern sum- Worms, Woodcock mer, the surface temperature is too hot and Land-Use Practices for the woodcock’s favorite worms. We Fire, grazing and tillage all reduce wonder if that is one reason why they the volume of dead plant matter on the migrate north to find better feeding. soil surfaces. These practices may When surface soil dries out, worms reduce worm food and, hence, reduce also go deep. Woodcock cannot get worm populations. However, fire, graz- worms from hard, dry soil. Nor can ing and tillage may benefit woodcock in woodcock feed in soil that is too wet. the short term by clearing away thick Surface soil moisture of about 20 per- plant material so that woodcock can cent to 50 percent is best for woodcock easily probe for worms. Johnson and and worms (Edwards and Bohlen 1996). Causey (1982) noticed that woodcock Occasionally, widespread, extreme- favored burned pinelands for feeding ly cold winter temperatures in the South after dark. Woodcock use such open have caused soil to freeze and wood- habitats only at night because the short- cock to move. In most years, however, age of cover makes the birds vulnerable it is flooding on the winter grounds that to predation. In general, fire, grazing Page 4 and tillage followed by moist, rainy con- sunset. They leave singly or in loose, ditions means that good worm hunting small flocks. They are thought to migrate increases in the short term. at low altitudes, traveling about 30 to 40 Removing vegetation by fire, graz- miles per hour. We think that mountain ing and tillage also has long-term ranges, rivers and the seashore are their effects. Without the litter layer, the soil guides. dries out more quickly, making worms Their arrival on breeding grounds less available until the next rain. And in is remarkably constant from year to the long-term, less vegetation can mean year. The woodcock’s journey north less fertility and less worms. takes them from a mild southern cli- Can Woodcock Overharvest mate into the end of the northern winter. When woodcock arrive on the breeding Their Worms? grounds, the weather is often harsh with We suspect that woodcock can snow and ice storms, and temperatures reduce their food supply if they feed below freezing. If woodcock experience repeatedly in the same small area. harsh weather during the spring, sur- Woodcock eat 3 to 5 ounces of worms vival rates and nesting success suffer. per day—nearly their own body weight. A few woodcock remain to breed in Such removals, in large night-feeding the South, but they become progressively habitats, may not reduce worm-hunting scarcer from Tennessee to the Gulf Coast. success. But it is likely that in small spe- These remaining birds seem to disappear cial places, like seepage areas, wood- come June or so. By July, and continuing cock could reduce their food supply to through the summer, it is almost impossi- the point where they would have to seek ble to find a woodcock in the Deep worms elsewhere. Presumably that is South. Whether these birds migrate north one reason woodcock leave favorite with their young remains a mystery. covers after dark to forage more widely: to find places where worms are less Nesting exploited and more abundant. Birds nesting in the South will begin as early as late January. Most nesting on the northern breeding grounds begins The Woodcock’s Life late April to early May. Through the Year The woodcock hen lays four eggs in a shallow depression on the ground, Spring Migration often under bushes, amongst dead leaves In late January and early March, and twigs. The eggs are a beautifully most woodcock migrate from the south- camouflaged brown-spotted buff color. ern winter grounds to the breeding A nest is so hard to see that you can acci- grounds in the northern two tiers of dentally step on it. The hen incubates the states and southern Canada. eggs about 21 days. Birds may renest if The timing of spring migration the nest is destroyed or if the young are depends on increasing day length, but lost early during brood rearing. the exact time of the major flights is The young can travel with the dependent on moon phase and the pas- female within a day of hatching, but they sage of weather fronts. are not as independent as young turkeys When you see a full moon in and quail, which can feed themselves February, you know that most wood- immediately after hatching. The hen cock will leave the winter grounds with- gathers most of their food and feeds the in two weeks. young directly. The young will huddle The trigger will be a wind blowing under her for warmth during the first 10 from south to north. When the woodcock days. After this stage, the hen no longer sense this wind, they depart shortly after broods the young. Before they are truly Page 5 independent, the young are vulnerable to cycle of roosting, feeding and courtship. death from cold, wet weather. The hen’s Woodcock become active about an hour assistance tapers off after three weeks, before daybreak when they feed heavily and the young are on their own after and sometimes conduct courtship activ- about 35 days. Once independent, the ities. The birds usually fly from their young disperse from the brooding area roosting site to a location in dense but remain in the general vicinity until thickets where they will spend the day. the fall migration south. These flights are under half a mile, and Fall Migration take less than a minute. Although woodcock may use a The return south is a drawn-out variety of daytime habitat types, they affair. In the far North, woodcock begin usually choose wet thickets where they migrating as early as late September, but find a high density of plant stems, but most birds begin migration in October. the ground itself will be open and clear. Timing of migration may be dependent Such cover allows easy access to on weather, but, as with the spring migra- worms and insects in the leaf litter, tion, the driving force is day length. while the roof of plant stems and leaves By Thanksgiving, most woodcock protects them from predatory mammals have left the summer breeding grounds. or birds. Typical covers include cane, Migration routes of birds headed for privet, wax myrtle and briars. After Georgia and the Carolinas are mainly arriving in daytime cover, woodcock east of the Appalachians. More adults will move and feed for an hour or so, migrate inland than young, which then settle down to hide for the rest of migrate along the Atlantic coast. Some the day. woodcock migrate through the South- Woodcock avoid predators by re- east and winter in Louisiana. maining perfectly motionless. Move- Early migrants arrive on the winter ment is risky. About an hour before grounds in late November. By mid- dark, woodcock begin again to forage in December, most birds have arrived at their thickets. Around dusk, they may their winter destination. The northern move to a brushy field or to another limit of the wintering grounds is south spot in the woods and continue to for- of freezing soil. Frozen ground makes age for a couple of hours after dark. worms unavailable. Most woodcock Those birds that move to fields often winter in the southern Piedmont and conduct courtship activities including Coastal Plain, although some go as far peenting and the sky dance. Foraging south as Miami. activities subside, but after midnight Winter in the South they may forage again for an hour or so. Once on the southern wintering After this, woodcock settle down again grounds, the woodcock follow a daily for the rest of the night. FACTS ABOUT AMERICAN WOODCOCK ! Woodcock are migratory shorebirds that snipe, wood snipe, hill partridge, night partridge, and primarily winter in the Southeast. They begin to arrive the most common nickname, timberdoodle. around late November and leave by early March. ! Females are slightly larger than males (6 ounces vs. ! Long bill with large eyes set far back on head and 5 ounces). mottled brown plumage make the woodcock an odd- ! Most live less than one year. looking bird. ! Moist thickets are the best habitat, but woodcock can ! Nicknames include bec noir, becassé, night becassé, sometimes be found in a variety of habitat types from bog borer, bog sucker, big eyes, swamp bat, mud bat, bottomland hardwoods to old-growth pines. hokumpake, Labrador twister, whistler, marsh plover, ! Earthworms are their main food. They also eat insects. big-eyed John, swamp quail, snipe, blind snipe, brush ! We believe the woodcock is an indicator species; its snipe, cane snipe, dropping snipe, forest snipe, owl presence speaks of land health.

Page 6 Woodcock Management Perhaps more than any other south- Ideal Habitat ern game animal, the woodcock is the Structure truest indicator of total wildland quality. High stem This is due to the array of habitats it density with needs: forest, thickets and fields on bare ground good soil. for foraging, hiding and By contrast, some game animals escape cover can be brought to greater abundance by quick-fix management plans: A grain field planted for doves can produce a dove shoot in 90 days; an agricultural Ideal field converted to thickets of blackber- Vegetation ries can create good rabbit hunting in Leaves of two years; a clearcut of hardwoods in preferred trees the mountains can make grouse habitat decompose in five to 10 years. Some animals like to make good deer can be abundant in degraded worm food forests or almost any habitat. Why can’t we make instant woodcock habitat? One reason is that woodcock feed in the detritus food chain. Detritus is dead and decaying plant matter. Unlike the above creatures, which live in the graz- ing food chain and eat live vegetation. The woodcock’s food supply depends on decomposition. The value and rich- ness of the good wormy soil that wood- Ideal Weather cock need exists out of sight, under Factors Ideal Soil ground and largely beyond our control. Soil moisture and Texture We cannot make woodcock habitat ideal temperature Loamy soil; not bring worms directly, in the short term. But if we too sandy; not to surface too much decay manage our land with woodcock in mind, in the long-term it will, on aver- information from your adjacent neigh- Figure 6 age, be better land for a great variety of bors. It may be that your property has Ideal woodcock habitat includes wildlife. no nighttime cover, but your neighbor these features. may have plenty. If so, you would be Start With a wise to concentrate on improving the daytime covers found on your property. Land-Use Inventory Once you have a map, think about The first step in wildlife habitat what areas you would be willing to management is to inventory your land. manage. These decisions will be based Make a map. Within your property on the acreage involved, the extent of boundaries, draw the boundaries of the management needed and whether man- major habitat types; e.g., bottomland agement will really help. Whether man- hardwoods, pine plantations, streamside agement will help will depend on the corridors or whatever. Get aerial photos availability of the different woodcock from your local natural resource conser- covers and foraging areas that wood- vation service office. Include habitat cock need daily. The following sections Page 7 will help you make your map. You may for woodcock to spend the day. These also want to consult W. G. Sheldon’s special places are indicators of the gen- 1971 book, The Book of the American eral health of the land; thus, an abun- Woodcock, for additional information. dance of woodcock is one indication that the land is healthy. Protect or Create “We“We still havestill havethose thoserich patches rich patches wherewhere agricultureagriculture and and forestry forestry have have Daytime Cover beenbeen foundfound uneconomicaluneconomical toto pre-empt. Theypre-empt. are Theytreasures.” are treasures. — C.” H. D. Find and Maintain Daytime Clarke — C. H. D. Clarke Hiding Places If your search for ideal woodcock Ideal woodcock habitat is a combi- daytime habitat reveals ideal moist soil nation of vegetation type, structure, habitat that lacks cover, you can create weather factors and soil (Figure 6). that cover. If cover is deficient due to Woodcock dis- grazing, fence off the habitat to allow tribution is most thickets to grow. Establish suitable limited during cover plants such as alders, cane, or pos- the day. The first sibly privet. Do not establish privet if it job in woodcock is not already common in the area, as management privet is an invasive exotic plant with should be to find pest status. Consider half-cutting over- and protect the story trees and leaving the tops to create special places immediate cover. Half-cutting means where wood- partially severing the trunk to allow the cock can spend tree to fall. Half-cut trees often remain the day. These alive and will last longer as cover than treasures are completely severed trunks. Once sun- Photo: Jeff Jackson the heart of light reaches desirable moist soil on the Figure 7 your woodcock habitat. Look for moist forest floor, a thicket will likely estab- Cane thickets can make soil at the toe of slopes, or near springs lish itself. If a special place is too dense, excellent hiding thickets or seepage areas. Rich, moist soil under consider a thinning or prescribed burn- for woodcock. cover of thickets, where they can find ing to thin the cover. Thin just a little, worms and be safe, is preferred habitat not too much. Figure 8 A wet woods is often good woodcock habitat. Photo: Jeff Jackson

Page 8 Some creek bottoms and low lying lands show evidence of old ditches left over from the drainage days when ditching was a widespread practice. A possible management procedure might be to plug those ditches (Figure 9). The resulting rise in the water table will usually benefit worms and so help woodcock. Be wary of this practice where you have valuable timber because changing the water level might hurt the trees. The habitat management practices for daytime cover will also benefit woodcock visiting those covers at night. Land Management Photo: David Krementz Clearcuts Figure 9 Practices That Plugging a ditch can be a step You can make a temporary field in improving woodcock habitat. May Incidentally by harvesting timber. Clearcuts can be Help Woodcock excellent nighttime cover (Figure 3). Shelterwoods and Seed Trees Although the core of woodcock Trees left after partial harvest management is finding, protecting or are often intended to provide a seed creating special places, woodcock source for the next crop of timber. A management can also be a by-product shelterwood or seed tree will suffice of land management done for other to create a patchy environment. purposes. Burning, mowing, herbicide These partial harvests may not be application, tillage and timber harvest quite as good as clearcuts because may help or harm woodcock habitat as birds of prey like to perch in trees. a by-product of their primary purposes. Read the following sections to see how Postcutting Treatments they might contribute to your wood- Remember, you want a patchy cock management plan. Generally appearance to the field: a mix of speaking, these practices set back plant thickets and open. What better way succession. They can be used to to achieve this objective than by let- improve foraging habitat and singing ting hardwoods and softwoods grow grounds. for the first year or two? A reason- able amount of slash left on the Timber Management ground will further add to patchiness. and Woodcock Whatever you do with your cut, we Managed timber rotations mimic do encourage you to leave alone wet- plant succession in simplified fashion ter sites—seeps, springs, streams, with some exceptions. Timber man- creeks. These sites are suited for agers usually simplify the forest to hardwoods naturally, and managing focus growth on one or more profitable them for pines usually involves both species of trees. They may reduce mechanical and herbicidal treat- understory with herbicides or fire. ments. The costs of these treatments Woodcock may find good habitat, at might not be worth the future return. certain times and places, as an acciden- These wet spots are what woodcock tal by-product of timber rotation. thrive on; leave wet spots alone. Page 9 If you abandon management, Pine Monoculture WOODCOCK plant succession will change a and Woodcock RECIPE logged area back into a forest. After Many people ask, “Are pines a few years, most clearcuts become good for wildlife?” Dense monocul- To the cook, the wood- too thick for woodcock. At this tures of southern pines tend to acid- cock is a culinary experience. point, a prescribed fire might help. A ify the soil and degrade habitat for Many appreciate its rich, light fire will thin out the vegetation woodcock and many other species hearty flavor. Woodcock have but leave enough patchiness to low fat content, so either of wildlife. Pure pine monocultures encourage continued woodcock use. cook slowly with moist heat are usually poor woodcock habitat or cook quickly with high If you don’t maintain the field, the (Figure 10). However, the southern heat. These approaches help canopy will close in after five to 10 pines (longleaf, shortleaf, loblolly avoid the error of over-drying. years. Almost all use of the field as a or slash) can vary from good to poor nighttime cover will cease as ground as woodcock habitat. The variation Jane Gusmano’s and midstory layers disappear. woodcock with cream is due to differences in the understo- serves 1-2 Thinning the Forest ry, litter layer and soil. A very 2 woodcock You can sometimes improve a sparse pine forest with a good thick- Several gratings fresh dense woods for woodcock by har- et understory is better for woodcock nutmeg vesting some trees. The extra light than dense pines that shade the for- 3-4 Tbs. butter on the ground will allow thicket est floor and often have little or no 4 Tbs. heavy cream cover plants to thrive. When suitable thickets for woodcock. salt and pepper choosing trees for removal, you Hardwood sprouts, small trees, gall- must inevitably make tradeoffs berries, blackberries, cane thickets, Carefully pluck woodcock among timber value, growth poten- broomsedge, wiregrass or other rather than skin them. tial and value to woodcock and vegetation may grow under pines. Leaving skin on prevents other wildlife. There is no one loss of juices. Put the liver, Prescribed Burning in Pinelands heart and 1 tablespoon of proper way to thin woodlands. A Burning is a common forest butter inside the bird, then wildlife enthusiast often prefers a management practice, especially in skewer it shut. Rub birds well variety of trees to a pure stand or pine habitat. Fire can remove pine with butter, salt, pepper and monoculture. needles and clear the forest floor to nutmeg. There is no set rule about the Place in a low baking create opportunities for woodcock number of trees to remove when dish and pour 2 tablespoons to find worms. Fire sets back plant heavy cream on each bird. thinning. Heavier thinning will put succession, can favor fire-resistant Bake in a 375° oven for more light on the ground and will pines and can stimulate regrowth. about 25 minutes until stimulate undergrowth. This Fire can provide many of the same tanned and tender. Baste undergrowth may be excellent or benefits as mechanical and herbici- every 5 minutes. Spoon hot poor for woodcock depending on cream and juices over each dal treatments but at less expense. the soil, plants present, and previ- serving. A prescribed fire is one set with ous history of the site. Keep in a goal and a plan. Contain pre- mind that woodcock are often scribed fires within a man-made or unable to use a forest habitat with natural firebreak. Get help from too sparse an understory. Consider, experienced personnel when con- too, that certain old natural forests ducting fires. Bulletins on con- have become increasingly rare. If trolled fire are available from the you have a special woods, treasure county office of your land-grant it as it is. university Extension service and Get an accurate measure of the forestry agencies. volume and professional help There are many uses, benefits, before selling any trees. The Exten- and liabilities of fire that are too sion service and state forestry agen- complex to explain here. Winter cies have bulletins on timber har- burns remove dense vegetation and vest to help you. plant litter so woodcock have easy Page 10 access to the soil for foraging. It is Flash fuels like dry grasses may best if the larger stems remain to burn readily after only a short drying provide cover. period, especially if it is windy. How often should you burn? When there is enough dry material to The richer the soil, the faster plants carry a fire, check the wind and grow and the more often burning is humidity. Humidity should be necessary. Vegetation on very poor between 30 percent and 60 percent. soils may be slow to recover. A A wind speed of 5 to 15 miles per mosaic of 1- to 4-year-old burned hour will help keep the heat cleared areas often works well to ensure a away from the pine tops and reduce mixture of cover. A greater variety the chance of scorching treetops. of plants can result from a mosaic With no wind, scorching is likely. of burns than when large areas are Fires may be set to back into the given uniform treatment. Some wind (backfire), burn at a right angle environments need burning more often than others. Avoid burning large areas. Large burned areas are less desir- able for woodcock than those that leave scattered, unburned patches of habitat valuable for feeding and protection. Sometimes you can burn with spot fires under conditions that leave patches of cover. Or you can divide the woods into a mosaic of smaller sections with firebreaks. Burn a third of these sections each year or so at winter’s end. Rake around or otherwise pro- tect isolated hardwood trees in pine Photo: David Krementz stands. Likewise, avoid burning to the wind (flank fire), or run with Figure 10 forest edges if they contain choice the wind (headfire). Backfires are This pine monoculture stand is thickets or other desirable plants. safest for beginners. Set fires with a poor woodcock habitat. Choosing the right time to burn drip torch in strips or as spots. Do not pinelands is critical. Early winter encircle areas with fire unless you burns remove cover for a long peri- intend to kill all trees and vegetation od, whereas burns just before spring within. Read Georgia Extension green-up allow cover to regrow Bulletin 838, Prescribed Burning: A shortly after a fire. Management Tool or other suitable Often ideal conditions for a instructions before using fire in the winter or early spring fire develop woods. Get help and advice and per- after a cold front brings a soaking mits, if necessary, from your state rain of at least an inch. A few days forestry organization. of steady, reliable wind from the Managing Open Lands north or west will usually follow. The litter should be wet right down for Woodcock to the soil (check it). As the litter Maintain Old Fields dries from the top there is an Landowners often establish and increasing layer of flammable maintain old fields for rabbits, quail, material above the moist litter. deer and other wildlife. Woodcock

Page 11 use such habitat at night. Uniform Mowing ground cover is undesirable from Mowing functions much like the woodcock’s standpoint. Thus, grazing, and it has the added advan- you will need to break up monoto- tage of being very selective. Mow at nous cover to make the field attrac- any time of year to suppress unwant- tive to woodcock. Alternatives ed growth as needed. Mowing in include discing, mowing, herbi- patches in fall after growth has cides, burning and encouraging ceased can help create foraging areas Photo: Jim Berdeen native shrubs and trees. The goal of for woodcock in winter. Figure 11 these measures should be to make a Dense grass cover prevents field that is patchy. A little mowing Tilling Fallow Croplands woodcock from probing here, a little tilling there, is better Fallow fields are fields set aside for worms. than doing too much. to rest but will have crops again in the future. Harrowing tends to set Pasture Management back some sod-forming grasses and Cattle, goats and sheep can hardwood sprouts. It can make way maintain areas of short vegetation for annuals, bunch grasses, shrubs that can be very desirable when and sometimes hardwoods. The tim- interspersed with cover. Overgrown ing of harrowing is important. Try windrows of branches and trunks harrowing small plots at different left after logging, brushy ditchbanks times throughout the year and note and dense thickets of briars are good what plants grow afterward. Note kinds of cover in a pasture. Grazing which plots woodcock use. Results animals will not overuse if pickings will vary with the locality. A field or are better in the open field. Brief field edge should have harrowed por- periods of intensive grazing will set tions in various stages of regrowth. back plant succession but if grazing Try a three-year rotation so each year continues too long, it may be detri- there is a mixture of 1-, 2-, and 3- mental. Grazing that results in areas year-old cover. Harrowing, like her- of very short grass or little bare bicides, can help create and maintain places can affect worm foraging singing grounds. Burning can Figure 12 Burning in field or forest can habitat. Tall dense grass may support remove dense grasses and weeds to make worms more accessible high worm populations but is not allow woodcock access to the soil for to woodcock. good woodcock foraging habitat. easy foraging. See figures 11 and 12. Photo: Hans Stigter

Page 12 History and Future of Woodcock recruitment. Recruit- The Past and Future ment is the number of of Woodcock new breeding animals entering a population. Populations The number of young shot Woodcock populations in the East per female has shown a probably peaked around the 1940s-’50s long-term decline, which after large-scale farmland abandonment supports the singing- during the 1930s. ground survey results. As abandoned farmlands grew back into brush and then into young forests, a What Causes lot of great woodcock breeding habitat became available. Scattered dense Woodcock thickets on good soil characterized Population these habitats. Since the 1950s, however, aban- Declines? doned farmlands have, through plant Among the many recog- succession, grown to become forests. nized causes for the decline And the woodcock is not a big woods of woodcock (Straw et al. Range of Woodcock in bird on the breeding grounds. 1994), the most probable Eastern Survey Region Today the combination of forest causes include the loss and Area Covered succession, land loss to urbanization, alteration of habitat. by This Bulletin large-scale conversion to monotonous The outright habitats and unknown factors have con- loss of habitat has tributed to the decline of woodcock. been primarily due Since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to urbanization. Service (USFWS) began monitoring This has been woodcock populations in 1968, wood- especially true Figure 13 cock in the Eastern Region (Figure 13) along the Atlantic seaboard Eastern woodcock survey have experienced an average annual from Boston to Washington. region and area covered by this decline of 2.6 percent (Figure 14). This Habitat change has almost bulletin (Bruggink 1998) survey measures the numbers of males always meant more suburbs, singing along survey routes in the bigger towns, larger cities. This trend is spring. especially severe along the East Coast, The USFWS also monitors the num- which once had far more woodcock ber of young of the year shot per adult habitat than it does today. There will female taken (Figure 15). The number of never be as much habitat available for birds less than a year old as a proportion woodcock in the future as there was in of the population gives an estimate of the past.

4.0 2.2 Figure 14 (far left) 3.5 2.0 Long-term trends and annual 3.0 1.8 indices of the number of

2.5 1.6 woodcock heard on the singing- ground surveys (Bruggink 1998) 2.0 1.4

1.5 1.2 Figure 15 Indices of woodcock 1.0 1.0 ’68 ’71 ’74 ’77 ’80 ’83 ’86’89 ’92 ’95 ’98 ’63 ’67 ’71 ’75 ’79 ’83 ’87 ’91 ’95 recruitment. Dashed line is the Adjusted Young Per Adult Female Number of Singing Males Per Route Year Year average. (Bruggink 1998) Page 13 More subtle than the loss of habitat This plan described ways federal, has been the alteration of habitat. state and private agencies could work Examples include maturation of forests, cooperatively in addressing problems, water development, conversion of natur- developing management programs, al lands into agriculture or forest mono- and assuring the future well being of cultures. But to woodcock, these alter- woodcock. ations represent a loss of habitat com- The goal of the plan was to increase plexity, a decrease in soil quality and woodcock populations to levels consis- often a change in the water table. tent with the demands of people who use The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and enjoy them. is mandated by law to manage wood- Inherent in this use was the harvest cock populations in a manner that will of woodcock, which was considered not endanger the health of the woodcock desirable and consistent with the conser- population and, at the same time, pro- vation of woodcock. vide opportunities for the public. The A two-pronged approach was out- service has at its disposal two primary lined. First, habitat management was means of managing woodcock. First, thought to be the key to maintaining and and foremost, the service sets hunting increasing woodcock populations. season dates and bag limits. Since 1968, Management of public lands on both the there have been four changes in dates breeding and wintering grounds was and bag limits: 1982, 1983, 1991 and outlined as well as outright protection of 1997. Season dates, bag limits or both key concentration areas that are impor- were altered or reduced. The other alter- tant during migration. native is to purchase or manage federal Second, population management lands for woodcock or encourage pri- should be conducted through existing vate landowners to do so. To date, nei- regulatory processes with harvest com- ther of these land management options mensurate with population status. has been attempted in more than a few Population status would be monitored isolated locations. through the singing-ground surveys and the wing-collection survey. The wing- American collection survey has since been upgrad- ed with the current Harvest Information Woodcock Program, or HIP, which will greatly improve the means for obtaining data on Management Plan harvest and hunter numbers. In 1990, the USFWS, USDA Forest The USFWS aims to help state, pri- Service and the Ruffed Grouse Society vate agencies and private landowners to signed a memorandum of understanding learn management practices that will designed to guide the conservation of help the woodcock. We hope our bul- woodcock in the United States. letin makes a contribution to that end.

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Bulletin 1183 Reviewed April 2009

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