Short abstract from the book: The woodcock is a fairly common breeder in Denmark,
breeding mainly in the eastern parts of the country. It is a
very common passage migrant in October–November and
March–April, and a rare winter visitor.
In Denmark the first woodcock was ringed in 1921, with
the majority ringed from the early 1970s to the mid-1990s.
Most of the recovered birds were ringed in southwestern
Jutland, with the majority ringed in October–November and
March–April. Only seven of the recovered birds were ringed
as chicks.
Recoveries show that the migrants passing Denmark are
from populations in Sweden, Finland, the Baltic countries
and western Russia. These birds have been found in Denmark
from October to April. Some birds have been caught at
the ringing site during autumn, some up to 44 days after
ringing. In October and November many have been recovered in Denmark, but in late November the majority have
moved to the British Isles and France. In winter most birds
have been recovered in the British Isles and western France.
A smaller number have been recovered in Denmark, the
Netherlands, Belgium and northern Spain. The woodcocks
return to Denmark in March and April, with the last woodcocks recovered in Ireland and Scotland in March and in
Belgium in mid-April. In April the mean position is northeast
of Denmark. A woodcock ringed as a chick in Denmark was
recovered in Russia as a two-year-old.
The main known cause of death is hunting. Most were shot
in November.
Read more about the species in the chapter from The Danish Bird Migration Atlashere
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