When Do Woodcock Peent?

Woodcock court in the dim light of evening and dawn. While on the ground, the male repeats a nasal, buzzing call most often represented as peent. After peenting for a minute or so, the male takes off and flies upward until he is 100 to 300 feet in the air. He pauses and hovers in a circle for perhaps half a minute.

What time of day do woodcocks display?

Males perform their dance almost every night from early spring into early summer starting shortly after sunset. Displays vary in length depending on weather conditions and moon phase, but average about 30 minutes. But on clear nights with a full moon, males sometimes display all night long.

When can you see a woodcock?

Woodcock avoid peatlands, pure coniferous and mature deciduous woodlands. Males do their spectacular sky dances twice a day at dawn and dusk from mid-March to early June. The evening display starts about 20 minutes after sunset on clear nights or about 7 minutes earlier on cloudy evenings.