As I look out a window at my brother’s house in Columbus, Ohio, I see a young maple tree covered in leaf buds. I looks as if it can’t wait to burst forth with its leaves to add a little color to the dreary landscape that has dominated for so long.
I find it hard to concentrate as every 12 seconds or so a love-sick mourning dove booms out a desperate “whoooo.” A robin sings from the roof of a neighbor and a I can faintly make out a male cardinal’s breeding call in the distance.
Spring is only slightly more advanced here in Ohio as in New England, too, the birds are already singing and the daffodils, sedum and some other hardy plants are poking through the ground. I haven’t yet seen trees budding, but I’m checking almost daily.
The spring bird migration has begun, as well. Red-winged blackbirds are noisily staking out their territory and there have been reports of great-blue herons exhibiting nesting behavior in southern New England.
Great-blue herons have also been sighted in the middle of New England, too.
Among the most well-known of the early migrants is the American woodcock, famous for its elaborate twilight mating ritual in which the male spirals up about 200 feet into the air and spirals down to a soft landing. The woodcock is eight to 10 inches long, camouflaged perfectly for its ground surroundings with brown and tan plumage, has a short neck, large eyes, and a long bill adapted for hunting its favorite prey: earthworms.
If you get the impression from that short description that the American woodcock is an unusual bird, you’re right. But we love it anyway. Late March/early April is the time to witness its odd mating ritual, usually done in a field or opening in the woods.
Throughout my nature travels, I’ve had terrific luck finding some species of birds. The woodcock is not one of them. I’ve seen only a handful and the best look I’ve ever had was on a Vermont trail before I became obsessed with birdwatching so I didn’t fully appreciate the moment.
I’m waiting for the opportunity to come again. This time I won’t simply walk past the “weird looking” bird on the side of the trail.
Like many birds, the population of woodcock in on the decline, so my chances diminish each year. Here’s hoping the population stabilizes or increases quickly, whether I see them or not.
Perhaps the population will have a similar fate to that of the wood duck. Headed toward the edge of extinction in the late 1800s, early 1900s because of unregulated hunted and habitat loss, the wood duck has made a remarkable recovery and is now one of our most common ducks.
Bravo for the conservation efforts that saved the wood duck. I can’t imagine a trip to our local ponds or the myriad of lakes, marshlands and rivers I visit without a sighting of the beautiful wood duck.
Sometimes conservation efforts don’t work or come too late to save a species, but many times they do. Look at the wood duck, osprey, bald eagle and peregrine falcon. Efforts worked for those species. As spring approaches, let’s hope efforts work for other species as well.

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