Populations of american woodcock have declined for over half a century, and the american woodcock singing ground survey (SGS) is one of the primary datasets used to inform woodcock management

The University of Maine System will receive $122,616 under a three-year Cooperative Agreement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 9 Headquarters, to support the Migratory Bird Monitoring, Assessment and Conservation program. Through July 2026, the University will GPS-track and collect genomic samples from male American woodcock in wintering areas within the central management region. This will help assess the validity of the American Woodcock Singing Ground Survey timing and coverage in that region, and contribute to ongoing research on woodcock population structure supported by prior funding. Results will include a manuscript providing an updated assessment of the survey for woodcock managers to improve conservation practices. The work will leverage the collaborative network of the Eastern Woodcock Migration Research Cooperative.

To avoid bias, the SGS should be timed to avoid periods of migration, and the distribution of survey routes should coincide with woodcock breeding distribution. Recent research in the eastern woodcock management region using GPS tracking of male woodcock suggests current SGS design is largely consistent with timing of migration in all but the northernmost latitudes. However, the number of males that have been marked and tracked in the central management region is limited. Because breeding areas in the western portion of woodcock range occur at more northern latitudes than in the eastern management region, IT is possible that mismatch between the SGS and woodcock migration may be more extreme for the central management region. We propose to leverage the collaborative network created through the eastern woodcock migration research cooperative (ewmrc WWW.woodcockmigration.ORG) to GPS-mark male woodcock in wintering areas in the central management region and bolster the sample of spring migrants to further assess SGS timing and coverage. These birds will also contribute genomic samples to ongoing research on woodcock population structure, supported by previous webless migratory game bird research funding. This proposed work will result in a manuscript providing an assessment of SGS validity in the central management region, which will benefit woodcock managers through improved application of the SGS to woodcock conservation practices.