The woodcocks were displaying in the back of Huntley Meadows on Sunday
evening in the first field on the left. I was with 7 friends, and we were
joined by another birder. The weather was snowy, with big flakes coming
down. At 7:16, we saw a woodcock flying, and he landed about 20 feet away
from the main path in an open area of the field. There was still enough
light so that we had close prolonged looks at the bird -- he might have
come out earlier than usual because of the overcast/snowy conditions. The
bird stayed on the ground peenting for more than ten minutes before going
into the air again. He opened his bill wide with each peent. There were
probably 3-4 woodcocks flying in the area. I don't know if it was because
of the weather, but when the birds were in the air, I could not hear the
whistling of the wings or the vocalizations that the bird usually makes
when descending.
Bill Young
Arlington, VA
