The American woodcock is a small, plump bird found in North America, known for its excellent camouflage and unique courtship display. Males perform a fascinating “sky dance” at dawn and dusk, spiraling into the air before descending in a zigzag pattern. During this display, they produce a distinctive “meep meep” sound while on the ground, which is a short, nasal call used to attract females. Their natural habitat includes moist forests and fields, where they use their long, flexible beaks to pro

This male American woodcock has some glide in his stride and some dip in his hip. It must be springtime at Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge in Maine. Footage by Keith Ramos / USFWS | Center for Biological Diversity

The American Woodcock (also known as timberdoodle, Labrador twister, night partridge, and bog sucker) won in the funniest category of our bird Grammys by a landslide at 75% of the votes! Seek them out in the springtime at dusk, if you're in eastern North America. It can be hard at first to locate the bird in dim light, so listen for the distinctive, buzzy peent call given at fairly short intervals. It intersperses this call, given from the ground, with its spiraling display flights. In the air t