*beep*!
I was so happy last night at dusk to go out and hear not one, not two, but at least three male American woodcocks!
The woodcock, Scolopax minor, is a strange little bird, a sort of sandpiper-looking guy that lives in the woods and eats earthworms like a robin.
We moved here years ago at the end of January. When March came around, I went outdoors in the late evening and heard this strange, buzzy "beep" coming from the back of the property. Sometimes I would hear an equally strange chirring or whistling sound, almost bat-like, coming from overhead. Eventually I figured out that both of these noises were bird noises, woodcock noises.
If you have the bandwidth, listen to the sound file at Cornell. It's really hard to describe, but it's so distinctive, and yet another sign of spring.
Labels: birdwatching
posted by Alwen | 9:38 AM
4 Comments:
Do you get to see them do their dance? It is so cool you have woodcocks in your yard!!
What a great sign of spring. It's coming, it's coming! :)
You're a yardage weaver? (I saw this on Samurai Knitter's blog) Howdy, sister! I spent twelve years weaving sample fabrics for Pendleton Woolen Mills untill I was replaced (inadequately) by a computer. I don't weave much any more (space considerations. I need to set up the loom outside on the covered porch) but I'm always knitting. What a delight to have found you!
I've seen the woodcocks flying overhead in their display, and I've spooked one up under my feet and almost died of heart failure, but I've never seen one doodling for worms.
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