Scolopax minor

History:

• 1988-Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004)
• 1994-Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004)
• 2000-Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2000)

Justification

This species has a large range, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 4,200,000 km². The global population size has not been quantified, but the species is not believed to approach the thresholds for the population size criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., less than 10,000 mature individuals in conjunction with appropriate decline rates and subpopulation qualifiers). Global population trends have not been quantified, but the species is not believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., declining more than 30% in ten years or three generations). For these reasons, the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

Taxonomy

Notes:

Name Status: Accepted Name. Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001

Physical Description

Species Scolopax minor:

Dumpy, short-legged, short-tailed, rounded-winged shorebird · Explosive takeoff when flushed, wings make twittering sound in flight · Very long bill · Very large, dark eye set high in head · Buff-brown head, breast and belly buff to pale cinnamon · Black nape crossed by pale lines · Dark eyeline and auricular stripe · Gray-brown back, with black and chestnut feathering interspersed between two pale Vs · Upperwings reddish-brown; underwings brown, with rusty wing linings · Rusty rump; dark rectrices tipped gray/white · Found in woodlands and shrubby fields · Sexes similar · Juvenile similar to adult.

Size/Age/Growth:

Length: 8.25 inches

Images:

Distribution

Range and Population

North America

Diet

Almost Exclusively:

Worms Insects Lesser Quantities of: Seeds

Reproduction

• Breeding Habitat: Successional-scrub
• Clutch Size: 4
• Length of Incubation: 20-21 days
• Days to Fledge: 14
• Number of Broods: 1

Migration

Short distance migrant

Song/Voice

"a nasal beezp''(Peterson)
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Woodcock's aerial courtship display: beginning of display
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Woodcock's aerial courtship display: 2. "a series of trills produced by wings during ascent''(Audubon 1)
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Woodcock's aerial courtship display: 3. "during descent low whistled notes with a liquid, `kissing' quality, normally in groups of three: chew-chew-chew, chip-chip-chip, chew-chew-chew, chip-chip-chip.'' (Audubon 1)
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Woodcock's aerial courtship display: 4. "the courship call terminates abrubtly upon landing'' (Audubon 1)
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Woodcock's aerial courtship display: condensed version.
Recordist: Tony Phillips Date Recorded: April 01, 2004 Location of Recording: Long Island

Similar Species

Common Snipe is more slender and browner, without the crossbars on nape. In flight, the Common Snipe has much more pointed wings.

Members of the genus Scolopax:

There are approximately 22 species and subspecies in this genus: S. bukidnonensis · S. celebensis (Sulawesi Woodcock) · S. celebensis celebensis · S. celebensis heinrichi · S. frenata chilensis · S. hardwickii · S. indicus · S. leucurus · S. minor (American Woodcock) · S. mira (Amami Woodcock) · S. philohela · S. rochussenii (Moluccan Woodcock) · S. rosenbergii · S. rusticola (Eurasian Woodcock) · S. rusticola rusticola (Eurasian Woodcock) · S. rusticola ssp · S. sabini · S. saturata (Javan Woodcock) · S. saturata rosenbergii · S. sp · S. stricklandii · S. trachydactyla

Bibliography

• Banks, R. C., R. W. McDiarmid, A. L. Gardner, and W. C. Starnes 2003. Checklist of Vertebrates of the United States, the U.S. Territories, and Canada.
• BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, U.K.
• Ehrlich, P., Dobkin, D., and Wheye, D. (1988). The Birders Handbook: A Field Guide to the Natural History of North American Birds. New York: Simon and Schuster Inc. (info on clutch size, length of incubation, days to fledge and number of broods.)
• Robbins, C.S., Bruun, B., Zim, H.S., (1966). Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company, Inc. (Length and wingspan info.)

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Notes

Contributors:

• BirdLife International 2004. Scolopax minor. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.iucnredlist.org . Downloaded on 21 October 2006.
• Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed October 4, 2006.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 11, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 13 providers.
• Hines, J. E., Gregory Gough, J. R. Sauer, et al. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
• Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2005. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2004. Version 2005.2. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD
• Sauer, J. R., S. Schwartz, and B. Hoover. 1996. The Christmas Bird Count Home Page. Version 95.1. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD

Data Sources:

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 11, 2008:

• Avian Knowledge Network: eBird
• Avian Knowledge Network: Great Backyard Bird Count
• Avian Knowledge Network: Project FeederWatch
• Bird Studies Canada: Marsh Monitoring Program - Birds
• Bird Studies Canada: Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas 1981-1985
• Bird Studies Canada: Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas 2001-2005
• Borror Laboratory of Bioacoustics
• Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Ontario Nest Records
• Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Provincial Museum of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Birds (Aves)
• Canadian Museum of Nature: Canadian Museum of Nature Bird Collection
• Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates: Bird Collection
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University: Bay of Fundy Species List (OBIS Canada)
• Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University: MCZ Ornithology Collection
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology: Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
• New Brunswick Museum: NBM birds
• Royal Ontario Museum: Bird specimens
• UCLA-Dickey Bird Collection (UCLA-Dickey): Bird specimens
• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (UMMZ): Bird specimens

Identifiers:

• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 176580
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 237966
• Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: ABNNF19020
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 6814