Woodcock Watching

Spring is nigh and the woodcocks are well into their annual mating ritual  which is unreal to say the least. How would you like to attract a mate by making a call on land that sounds like a nasalized “peeenntt” and then soar high only to come  down making all sorts of weird sounds? 

This is the life of the male Woodcock (aka Timberdoodle, aka Mud Snipe). Schuylkill County has sites that are pretty decent to observe this annual late-winter and early-Spring natural ritual.  

It’s been said that this bird was put together by a dysfunctional committee. Given its chunky shape, small head, long bill and odd location of its eyes, of course  you would think that! 

It is a member of the sandpiper family of birds and is found mostly in wet areas that are forested. You’ll have to look hard because it sure blends in with the  leaf litter as it probes the ground looking for tasty earthworms.  

Here is info from “All About Birds:” The male woodcock’s evening display flights are one of the magical natural sights of springtime in the East. He gives buzzy peent calls from a display area on the ground, then flies upward in a wide  spiral. As he gets higher, his wings start to twitter. At a height of 200–350 feet the twittering becomes intermittent, and the bird starts to descend. He zig-zags down, chirping as he goes, then lands silently (near a female, if she is present). Once on  the ground, he resumes peenting and the display starts over again. You have got to admit that this is pretty wild! 

I bet you wish that there were times that you had eyes in the back of your  head. Well, the Woodcock certainly fits that bill. Their large eyes are positioned  high and near the back of their skull. This arrangement lets them keep watch for danger in the sky while they have their heads down probing in the soil for food. 

You will need to listen for them at dusk which is when the ritual starts. Listen and then look up to check out their flight against the last rays of sunshine  for the day.  

You should find these birds right now at Landingville Marsh. Just park in the  Schuylkill River Trail’s parking lot there and walk along the road. I heard that another locale is the big pond at Swatara State Park. This pond is near Swopes Valley Road and the nice, relatively new parking area for the park. We are very fortunate to have such a variety of birds here in Schuylkill  County. You will find the county Bird Checklist on Explore Schuylkill’s web page under the caption “Plan.”

^{Photo by Aimee Valencia/Wikimedia}

About the Author: “Porcupine Pat” McKinney is a part-time environmental education coordinator for the Schuylkill Conservation District and provides programming for people of all ages with a special emphasis on schools, nature center development and public programming.

“Porcupine Pat” is originally from Marion, Ohio and holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree with Distinction in Natural Resources with an emphasis on Environmental Interpretation from The Ohio State University.

He is a recipient of the prestigious Sandy Cochran Award for Excellence in Natural Resources Education from the Pennsylvania Forestry Association in 2005, the 2007 Schuylkill Pride Award, the 2010 Schuylkill Outdoors Personality of the Year and a recipient of the 2013 PA Association of Environmental Educators “Outstanding Environmental Educator Award.”

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