I combined corn this weekend and there were several several woodcock flushing out of the rows when I got close
Never seen that before and as curious if anyone has seen that before. It’s bottomland and a short green grass growing between the rows. Still moist so they’re in there eating worms.

My bad, I misread your post as "wood duck" instead of woodcock.

Never in corn, but definitely in wet fields

Snipe?

https://www.wildlifedepartment.com/outdoorok/ooj/wild-double-take-wilsons-snipe-and-american-woodcock#:~:text=Snipe%20are%20generally%20tied%20to,tied%20to%20young%20growth%20woodlands.

To answer own question I guess. Best I can figure is the standing corn mimics woodcock habitats they feed in. Overhead cover and open moist soil to feed on worms in.

Yeah, it probably was snipe.

I’ve seen wood ducks in flooded corn

Killed a few woodies in the flooded corn.

I flushed a few timberdoodles while cutting beans

Been a few years since I’ve seen any around the farm. All the preferable habitat has grown. I guess they’re passing thru.

One of my greater regrets hunting was a deer hunt during a HARD freeze. I jumped woodcock NOT snipe working down a bottom that apparently was the only non frozen ground around. Jumped enough that stalk hunting deer was pointless. Should have gone home and grabbed a shotgun and lab but the rut was close. Didn't see a deer that day and it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to shoot a limit of woodcock. No longer hunt there and the timber is gone anyway.

Used to kill a woodcock every so often while Quail hunting 40 plus years ago. Haven't flushed one in East-Central Alabama in many years.

I think they’re habitat dependent so to speak. In WI we’d have to go to an area down by the river to hunt them. Didn’t see grouse there but plenty of woodcock. We rarely flushed a timber doodle where we hunted the ruffed grouse. Haven’t seen any at the farm til this year. Neighbors had bottomland hardwood cost share and perfect habitat for years until recent. The hardwood are taller now and the limbs delinked so there’s a large opening under those trees now.

A good place to find them now is along hardwood bottoms next to pines plantation thickets that are young.

I know guys that’s all they hunt and follow the migration. They count flushes versus kills. They’ll flush and sometimes can hear t the ppppprrrreeeennnntttttt sound they make.

Cool little birds

How do they taste? I’ve heard that they are not very good

Never had a chance to try them - but have heard the secret is in the skin.

This guy Hank Shaw is a great resource for all sorts of upland (and other) game cooking.

https://honest-food.net/pan-seared-woodcock-recipe/

If you didn't know....You'd think you were eating a Dove.

Any and all I have had were good to excellent.

Snipe, not so much. A little strong to say the least. Probably need to soak a while 😆

A guy I know that chase’s the woodcock migration filets each side of the breast bone, soak/brine in salt water for a few hours. Coat with a good olive oil, add a little salt and pepper. Griddle rare and enjoy. Another thing we’ll do if I hunt with him, at the end of the hunt some really high dollar scotch, toast to the ones we killed and the fellowship of the hunt.

He wears a very old and worn bird counter. Only for timberdoodles yet we will kill quail or whatever the dogs point and are in season.

Only times I've ever killed woodcock was while hunting wood duck holes. I usually only see snipe in the open stuff.

Yup

Some guys posted pics on here of snipe hunts in mud flats

Before deer hunting was so popular, we hunted quail. We lived and hunted in the Soring Valley community of Colbert county. It was not all that rare to kill woodcock while quail hunting. The last we killed were behind the great n in Spring Valley and between the gin and the pecan grove by the old Mitchell home place behind and to the east of the gin.

There were definitely more woodcock back then or so it seemed. I used to hunt them on Seven-Mile WMA in some new growth timber. I had a Weimaraner and she lived hunting those things. I was actually looking for quail when I found them.
A good friends dad was a big quail hunter and hunted up down they 20/72 corridor. He got us access to a lot of duck holes.

There’s a lot of them around here. They love clearcuts close to creek bottoms. I usually jump 4-5 walking to and from shooting houses.
I’ve got a few that live in a wet pine thicket area too.