Woodcock Family

Woodcock mother and chicks (photo by Charlie Hickey)

It’s hard enough to find a woodcock let alone an entire family.

Early this month at Magee Marsh, Ohio I heard that a woodcock was nesting in a grassy sward of the parking lot.  I found the spot easily — it was surrounded by police tape — but I could not find the mother bird incubating her eggs.  I looked for quite a while but she was too cryptic for me to see.

Her eggs hatched the following week and Charlie Hickey was there to capture a family portrait.  I love how her chicks have cryptic down and tiny versions of her very long beak.

I wish I’d seen the chicks … but I couldn’t even find their mother.

 

(photo by Charlie Hickey. Click on the photo to see more pictures of this woodcock family)

5 thoughts on “Woodcock Family

  1. Is this cool or what? Right place right time for me about 20+ years ago, saving a family crossing the road in the middle of the morning….almost got hit…I was able to scoop up the 4 babies, and mama was not too happy, and I put them in the woods away from the road….was eye to eye with mama when I let them out my shirt….really, really something you won’t ever forget…(no camera back then…..now it goes with me everywhere!!!!)

  2. I was very happy to see these lovely birds in the parking lot at Magee Marsh this May! We also saw a woodcock near a small stream off the boardwalk.

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