Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-10-26
WOODCOCK ARE DYING OUT
Prince of American Game Birds is Becom.
ing Quite Rare.
Sportsmen Favor Prohibition o
Shooting for Five Ycars-Traits
of the Bird.
From the Chicago Tribune.

From the Chicago Tribune.
The race of the wooocock, regarded by
sportsmen as the prince OIL American game
birds, is passing. WORD comes from the
east, the west and from Iuany sections Of
the north that in the places which have
known its presence in large numbers the
bird is now either a stranger or Is found
only in small numbers. There is but one
course, the huntsmen say, which might be
taken to save for future generations this
feathered king of the low, damp woodland
stretches. A law in every state in the
Union absolutely prohibiting their shooting
for five years to come would give the birds
perhaps new hold on HE.
The Illinois game law n.'ows the shooting
of woodcock during the three autumn
months. A deputy game warden said with
in the week: I'VE have little trouble in
protecting the wOodcock, because practt-
cally there are no woodcock to protect"
In the field papers Of the east articles
have appeared recently which declare that
in New York and in the New England
states the day of this bird has nearly gone.
Those members of the woodcock family
which pass to the far north to breed have
better protection from man by the nature
of the surroundings than do those that
breed farther south. In the wilds of north
ern Minnesota, where q great park and
game preserve probably soon will be estab-
lished, the birds are said still to be album
dant This report of plenty is, however.
about the only cheering bit of news which
can be found among the notes of the bird
students.
Reason for Their Disappearance.
1t is held that there must be some reason
for the disappearance Of the woodcock be-
side the relentlessness with which 1t has
been pursued by sportsmen and the con-
scienceless pot-hunters, though II the law
could but make them keep finger from trig-
ger the game birds might be able to hold
their own against other enemies and the
other causes for the depicting OF their
ranks.
Formerly nearly every state in the Union
allowed woodcock shooting to begin on the
Fourth of July, the idea being that as the
birds bred early the young would be strong
enough on the wing by Independence day
to afford good sport The result was that
many adult birds were killed leaving broods
of little ones unable to care for themselves,
and WHOSE ultimate fate was starvation. 1t
is true that the woodcOck nests early, OFT
times when the snow still fingers on the
ground, and when the pools in the early
morning hours still have coatings of Ice.
Natural causes, like this and the occur
renee of heavy floods, often destroy the
first nests of the birds. In these cases the
Matching of the young is put forward so far
that the little ones are but half fiedged In
the early days of July. The woodcock,
moreover, is perhaps the only known bird
which at times, in the case of the destruc-
ton of its first nest, Will attempt no fur
Their housekeeping operations for the year.
The quail will keep at nest building till
snow flies, provided misfortune has over
taken its first attempts at homemaking.
The woodcock, while the. most devoted
bird mother on earth, is easily discouraged.
Then, again, she is content with a brood of
four young. while the quail. of not much
greater bulk of body, will head procession
of a dozen quail chicks. These facts are
ma king the woodcock'S game of life a los
ing one when Civilized enemies" in the
shape of men with breech-loaded shotguns
are added to its list Of woes.
WoOing of the WOodcock.
1t has been only in these later days, when
the woodcock tribe is on the wane, that
students have discovered characteristics of
the bird that make it in some ways surpass
In interest all its feather cousins. When
the young Of the bird have left the nest,
which they do almost Immediately upon
Matching. the mother 10 alert to every dan