 Breeding evidence |
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Click on plot to view table of mean abundance
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Number of squares
Long-term BBS trends
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Mean abundance (number of birds detected per 5 min. point count) and percentage of squares occupied by region Bird Conservation Regions [abund. plot]
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Atlas Results
Confirmed breeding for American Woodcock remains elusive in Saskatchewan, though observations in five atlas squares lend credence to the suspicion that occasional breeding takes place. Targeted evening surveys in the Porcupine Hills in 2019 revealed the presence of American Woodcock in three squares within 35 km of the Manitoba border, in keeping with recent expansion westward. In central Saskatchewan, two well-documented records of displaying birds on territory in 2017 and 2019 were an interesting surprise, though it is unlikely that either bird attracted a mate. One bird was observed calling and giving display flights near Eagle Creek on the Struan grid road for over three weeks, and the other in Prince Albert National Park for over five weeks.
Excerpts Adapted from the Birds of Saskatchewan:
Although Mitchell (1924) mentions "reports? of its occurrence at Oxbow and Moose Mountain, the next record was not until 1960, when a dubious sighting was reported from Craven without a date (Harrison 1960). More recent records from the southeast, most within 110 km of Manitoba are more credible (Smith 1996). The American Woodcock breeds in moist woods and thickets from southern Manitoba to southwestern Newfoundland, south through the eastern US, and it winters in the southern portion of its breeding range (AOU 1998).
The American Woodcock nests in young forest and abandoned farmland mixed with forest. Forest openings and old fields provide display areas and adjacent young hardwoods provide feeding habitat (McAuley et al 2020).
Woodcock is a breeding bird in southeast Manitoba that has wandered north and west and has recently expanded its range northwest to Riding Mountain (Nero 1977, 1981, and 1986). That suggests that its recent occurrences in Saskatchewan, especially the southeast, should not be surprising; that records should increase; and that it may even be found breeding in Saskatchewan. The recent records fit this pattern with most coming from the southeast close to the Manitoba border (Smith 1996).
Original text by Alan R. Smith. Text adapted and expanded upon by Daniel J. Sawatzky
Read more about the American Woodcock in the Birds of Saskatchewan here.
Recommended citation: Latremouille, L. M. 2025. American Woodcock in Latremouille, L. M., S. L. Van Wilgenburg, C. B. Jardine, D. Lepage, A. R. Couturier, D. Evans, D. Iles, and K. L. Drake (eds.). 2025. The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Saskatchewan, 2017-2021. Birds Canada. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan https://sk.birdatlas.ca/accounts/speciesaccount.jsp?sp=AMWO&lang=en [09 Nov 2025]
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