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Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) identification guide. Identifying features, nesting and feeding habits, call, and where to see them in the UK.
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Woodcocks are chunky, pigeon-sized birds with short, greyish-pink legs and a very long, straight bill. They're mostly brown, with an intricate pattern of black and grey barring, and broad, dark bars across the crown.
- Appearance & Identification
- Calls & Sounds
- Diet
- Habitat & Distribution
- Lifespan & Predation
- Nesting & Breeding
- Behaviour
- Migration
- FAQs
What do Woodcocks look like?
Eurasian woodcocks are stocky wading birds in the sandpiper family, with a long straight tapered bill and relatively short legs. Their large brown eyes are set far back on the sides of the head, which gives them an improved peripheral vision so they are able to sense the presence of nearby predators. Their plumage is highly mottled, allowing them to blend into their woodland surroundings. Their upperparts are reddish brown with darker brown markings across their rounded wings. Underparts are...
How big are Woodcocks?
Woodcocks are roughly the same size as woodpigeons, and are bulky, rounded birds, shorter in stature than many other wading birds due to their short legs. Females and males are the same size. 1. Length:33 cm to 35cm (13 in to 14 in) 2. Wingspan:55 cm to 65 cm (22 in to 26 in) 3. Weight:240 g to 420 g (8.5 oz to 14.8 oz)
What sound does a Woodcock make?
During the breeding season, male woodcocks engage in an elaborate and noisy courtship ritual known as roding. They fly over their territories at first light and again at dusk, making a series of grunts and squeaks, attempting to attract a mate and competing with other nearby males. A common call of a woodcock sounds almost like a frog croaking, accompanied by higher pitched squeak. Woodcocks are also known for their owl-like flight, with whirring wingbeats that echo through their woodland hab...
What do Woodcocks eat?
Woodcocks eat invertebrates, and their main sources of food include earthworms and spiders, as well as beetles, caterpillars, fly larvae and small snails. In spring, some plant matter is eaten, especially seeds, fruit, peas, grains, roots and grasses. Woodcocks drum the earth with their feet to attract worms to the surface, and then probe the soil with their long bills.
What do baby Woodcocks eat?
Woodcock chicks self feed from a very early stage, and eat mainly spiders and earthworms.
What is the habitat of a Woodcock?
Woodcocks breed in damp woodland environments, where dense undergrowth covers much of the woodland floor. Their main prey is earthworms, and they seek foraging sites with soils that are easy to penetrate, for example along streams, in orchards, hedgerows and marshes. Young conifer plantations are also a prime habitat for woodcocks.
What is the range of a Woodcock?
Eurasian woodcocks’ breeding range extends from the Canary Islands and Azores in the west, across northern and central Europe and Asia as far as Japan in the west. Woodcocks that breed in France and the UK are typically resident in these countries all year round. Woodcocks are migratory across much of their eastern and northern range and their winter range of woodcocks stretches from Portugal and the UK in the west, across parts of Spain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands in northern Europe...
Where do Woodcocks live?
Population statistics estimate that as many as 10 million woodcock pairs live in Russia, the country with the highest number of woodcocks. Other countries with high woodcock populations include Belarus, with up to 240,000 pairs, Finland, with up to 200,000 pairs, and Sweden, where up to 100,000 woodcocks live.
How long do Woodcocks live?
The average lifespan of a woodcock is 1.8 years. However, individuals are known to occasionally reach 7 years, as seen in recovered ringed birds.
What are the predators of Woodcocks?
Like other ground-nesting bird species, woodcocks are vulnerable to predation by foxes, stoats, sparrowhawks and tawny owls, while their eggs and young are commonly attacked by jays, carrion crows, squirrels, mice, hedgehogs and birds of prey.
Are Woodcocks protected?
Woodcocks are game birds, and can legally be hunted during the open season which runs from October 1 (September 1 in Scotland) until January 31. Outside of this period, it is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981, to knowingly kill, injure or capture a woodcock.
Where do Woodcocks nest?
Woodcocks use ground-level nests, forming a shallow scrape up to 5 cm (2 in) deep hidden by vegetation and roughly lined with grass, dry leaves and feathers.
What do Woodcock eggs look like?
A typical woodcock clutch contains between 2 and 5 eggs, which are pale buff-pinkish-brown in colour and heavily marked with red-brown spots. Eggs measure 44.2 mm by 33.5 mm, and are incubated for around 22 days by the female alone.
Do Woodcocks mate for life?
Woodcock pairs only stay together for the briefest period, around three to four days, and do not raise their young together.
Are Woodcocks aggressive?
Woodcocks are solitary birds and tend to be territorial during the breeding season, using a dramatic, loud flight display to see off any rival males.
Where do Woodcocks sleep at night?
Woodcocks roost during the day, and are active at night, foraging in pastures and meadows for earthworms and other invertebrate prey. During the day, they roost in woodland clearances that offer a good all-round view of any approaching ground predators.
Do Woodcocks migrate?
While the UK’s woodcock population is largely sedentary, in winter many birds may shift temporarily to lower altitude landscapes further south.
Are Woodcocks native to the UK?
Most of the woodcocks in the UK are resident here throughout the year, but in winter the native population is joined by overwintering migrants from Russia and Finland.
Are Snipe and Woodcock the same?
Woodcocks are similar in appearance to snipesbut the two species are found in different habitats, with woodcocks preferring woodlands and snipes mainly living and foraging in grasslands and moorlands. It’s not impossible to distinguish between the two visually, as snipes are slightly smaller and slimmer birds, and have striped faces, while woodcocks are stockier and have a striped crown.
How many Woodcock are shot in the UK?
An estimated 160,000 woodcock are shot by recreational hunters as game birds each year. Shooting is only permitted during the open season, which runs from October 1 (September 1 in Scotland) until January 31.
Can you eat Woodcock?
Classed as a game bird, woodcock is indeed edible. Due to the reclusive nature of the species, they are a notoriously hard species to track down, so woodcock is considered a relatively rare find in a butcher’s shop.
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Woodcocks are chunky, pigeon-sized birds with short, greyish-pink legs and a very long, straight bill. They're mostly brown, with an intricate pattern of black and grey barring, and broad, dark bars across the crown.
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