While birding at the Prime Hook NWR in Delaware last weekend I spotted this adorable American Woodcock dancing by the side of a quiet country road. These round little birds are usually pretty flighty so it was super cool to catch a good look at one at close range. My only regret was not having the wherewithal to take a quick video of him doing his classic bebop sway dance but I was so shocked to see him that all I managed to get were a few photos. Still it was amazing to take in the details of this bird as he danced in a pool of sunlight in the grass.
The American Woodcocks black and brown striated feathers serve as excellent camouflage and their long, malleable beaks probe the soil for earthworms. This is where natural selection comes in; because their preferred food lives underground, nature has selected for birds with upward-facing eyes that can scan the air for predatory birds while their bill pokes around for worms just under the earth’s surface.
Despite what their name suggests, American Woodcocks are actually a type of shorebird. Although this species and its closest American relative, (the Wilsons Snipe) are found in forests, it’s cousins are found in brackish marshes near salty waters. These guys typically spend the day resting in leafy cover of hardwood or mixed forests or taller thickets, especially were somewhat damp. At dusk, the Woodcocks will leave the forest and fly out to nearby plowed fields and other muddy or short-grass habitats, where they feed on earthworms and other invertebrates in wet ground during the night. At dawn birds can be seen flying back from the fields into the forests to hide again. Aren’t they awesome?! I love them.
