Eurasian Woodcock

The Eurasian woodcock is a medium-small woodland wader patterned in reddish brown and buff, giving it effective camouflage among dead leaves. Broad black bars cross the crown, unlike the lengthwise head stripes of snipes. Its long, straight and sensitive bill probes soft soil, while large eyes set high and far back on the head provide an exceptionally broad field of view. Rounded wings and a short body complete a shape adapted to manoeuvring through woodland rather than open shorelines. (Wikipedia, general species account)

Woodcock rest by day in woodland cover and commonly feed in damp ground or pasture, probing mainly for earthworms but also taking insects, larvae, freshwater molluscs and seeds. Frozen soil can sharply restrict access to food. In spring, males perform a dusk display flight called roding. The female nests on the ground in low woodland vegetation and incubates one or two eggs for twenty-one to twenty-four days; the precocial chicks leave the lined scrape soon after hatching. (Wikipedia, general species account)