Banding Woodcock

Most people don't know much about the American Woodcock. Woodcock weigh about 6 1/2 ounces. They have a long bill that is well adapted to probe for earthworms, their primary food. Unlike other members of the shorebird family, woodcock live in forested habitat. Rather than flush at the approach of a perceived threat, these birds are more likely to freeze, depending on their mottled gray, brown and black plumage to hide them on the forest floor.

A banker by profession, Dave Prawdzik pursues an unusual free time activity. He has been banding woodcock since 1981 as a sub-permitee under the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Like other bird banding programs, woodcock banding is designed to help determine the health of the population. Recoveries of banded birds provide information about age, post-nesting distribution and movements, annual survival, speed and range of migration and wintering range. But, since woodcock are legal to hunt, the banding effort also helps to determine trends in the numbers of birds harvested annually by hunters and whether seasons should be shortened or lengthened, or bag limits increased or decreased.

Unlike mist netting operations to catch passerines, woodcock banders use pointing dogs to locate hens and recently hatched chicks, then capture the birds using a long-handled net. Actually, the net is used to capture the adult hen; the chicks can then typically be picked up by hand. Dave Prawdzik nets an adult female woodcockI was fortunate to be able to accompany Dave and his three-year old English Setter, Sadie on a banding trip at the Edmore State Game Area along the Isabella/Gratiot County line on Saturday, April 30, 2011.

The cool spring appears to have delayed nesting, or perhaps caused more birds to nest farther south than usual and it looked as if we wouldn't have a banding opportunity. Sadie pointed birds on three occasions, but they turned out to be males that flushed. Sadie on pointThen around noon Sadie locked on point for a fourth time. Finding a bird from Sadie's perspectiveAfter a careful search without approaching too closely, we were able to locate an adult female woodcock. It is amazing how well they blend into the leaf litter. Adult female American WoodcockOnce we located the adult we continued to carefully search and soon we were able to find her four chicks scattered around nearby, and also blending into their environment. American Woodcock chickThe adult and the chicks get banded. Dave prepares to band the adult Adult woodcock with her new braceletFirst the adult is banded and released. (She flies off, but typically returns to the chicks within a few minutes.) I get to release the adultThen the chicks are banded and also measured from the base to the tip of the bill. At birth the bill length is 14mm and the bill grows about 2 mm per day. The bills on "our" chicks were about 17 mm, so the birds were likely about 1-2 days old.

After banding the chicks are released where they were captured, so the adult will be able to easily relocate them. Can you see the chick in this photo?Here is an example of the size of the young chicks. Size of a woodcock chick compared to a AA batteryA spring walk in the wet habitat often results in other encounters too. We came across a young Blanding's Turtle, a Michigan State-listed Species of Special Concern. Young Blanding's TurtleIt was a great experience to go out and watch the interaction between Dave and Sadie and have a chance to hold these unusual shorebirds of the forest in hand. In nearly 30 years of banding woodcock in Michigan, Dave has contributed substantially to the effort to monitor and manage these fascinating birds by recording and reporting his captures to the Breeding Bird Laboratory as well as reporting recaptures of birds previously banded by him and others.