#peent!

American Woodcock (Scolopax minor), family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes, Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, Maine, USA

PEENT!!!

Peent!

peent.

American Woodcock (Scolopax minor), Shenandoah National Park, VA, USA

 If you come to an open, wet area in the park within an hour or so after sunset, you might see male Woodcocks performing their amazing "Sky Dances." In an effort to impress females, they start with a buzzy "peent" call from the ground.  Then the males launch themselves in wide spirals high into the air, as the wind in their wings makes a twittering sound. Then they turn back, still twittering and adding some chirping as they descend. They announce their landing with another buzzy "peent." 

The Big Meadows area is a good place to try to find Woodcocks dancing in the late evening right now.  Their mating activities usually continue through May in Shenandoah National Park. Females will make a nest in a shallow depression in the leaf litter on the ground. Males don't share in parenting. Woodcocks have some great adaptations to help them survive. One is their camouflage coloring that keeps them hidden from predators.  Another is their long, straight beaks, which they use to probe for earthworms and other invertebrates in soft soil. The tips of their bills are flexible, allowing them to clamp down on food when they feel it. And their eyes are set well back on their skulls, so they can watch for danger while their heads are down, probing for food.

PEENT!

PEENT!