FREE. Birding Walk for Woodcocks at Evangola State Park on March 26 from 6:30-8:30pm led by New York State Parks. Free but register at 549-1050.
Dusk walk where hopefully you will be able to witness the dazzling aerial flight display of the American Woodcock.The male “Timberdoodles” spiral through the air like shot down flying aces. Plus the frog chorus.
The American woodcock, sometimes colloquially referred to as the timberdoodle, is a small chunky shorebird species found primarily in the eastern half of North America.The population of the American woodcock has fallen by an average of slightly more than 1% annually since the 1960s. Most authorities attribute this decline to a loss of habitat caused by forest maturation and urban development.
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 zigzags 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.
