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    This Spring Witness The Elaborate Song And Dance of American Woodcocks in Cleveland Metroparks

    News & Press | February 2012

    This Spring Witness The Elaborate Song And Dance of American Woodcocks in Cleveland Metroparks

    Posted: February 29, 2012
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    FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:



    BOB ROTATORI - 216-635-3263 - or -



    ERIC BARNETT - 216-635-7014



    There's a lot of singing and dancing going on in Cleveland
    Metroparks this spring. But, not by humans - by birds, the American
    woodcocks!



    Everyone is invited to witness the elaborate song and dance of
    American woodcocks, and learn more about their lifestyles and
    mating rituals by attending the following free programs in
    March:



    " font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Woodcock
    Watch



    " font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Wednesday,
    March 28 � 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
         



    " font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman';">CanalWay
    Center � Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation



    Each spring the male woodcock returns to northern Ohio and
    begins a nightly performance of calls and aerial dances to attract
    a mate. Search for this common, but elusive bird and watch his
    �skydance.� Wear hiking footwear and dress for the weather.
    CanalWay Center is located on Whittlesey Way, off the East
    49th Street entrance of Ohio & Erie Canal
    Reservation, between Grant Avenue and Canal Road in Cuyahoga
    Heights. For more information, call 216-206-1000.



    The Sky Dance of the Woodcock



    Thursday, March 29 � 7:45 - 8:45 p.m.



    Main Street Ballfield � Big Creek Reservation



    Some people call it a bogsucker or timberdoodle, but most know
    it as the woodcock. This intriguing bird is making its annual
    mating flight, and this is one �must see� for the bucket list! Main
    Street Ballfield is located off Main Street in Big Creek
    Reservation, north of Pearl Road/Route 42 in Strongsville. For more
    information, call 440-734-6660.



    A rotund little bird with a long beak that is used to pull
    earthworms out of the mud, the American woodcock lives in forests.
    The male woos his mate with an elaborate song and dance ritual that
    is one of spring's birding delights. Woodcocks can be heard in the
    eastern United States and Canada in March, and can continue to be
    heard in some northern sites in May. These spectacular sky dances
    only take place around dusk, so most predators can't easily see
    them. In addition, owls, prime nocturnal predators, are not
    attracted by the low-frequency �peents� and the higher pitched wing
    and warbling sounds that are made, because the bird is too high in
    the air for owls to catch.



    Watch and listen this spring for woodcocks singing and dancing
    in Cleveland Metroparks - part of your life,
    naturally.



     



     

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