Ritchey Woods Nature Preserve – March 20, 2026
Under late-afternoon sun on the first day of spring 2026, eighteen young adult birders showed up for the love of one strange bird, the American Woodcock. An early Osprey overhead set the group up for a spring hike through Ritchey Woods Nature Preserve in Fishers. Their guide, ABAS Editorial Chair, Olivia Bautch, stopped for observation at a handful of backyard species she deemed Woodcock “besties”– or birds who shared a trait with the star of the evening. Nuthatches hang upside down? Woodcocks have upside down brains! Besties.
The meander along Cheeney Creek picked up four of the area’s eight woodpecker species, vocal robins and cardinals, and flyover spring Turkey Vultures, and provided an encounter with several White-tailed Deer. After this, the group was introduced to the art of Woodcock watching.
Once the horizon filled out in an orange glow, the birders traversed along the grassland to set up camp at the Observation Deck to wait out the focal species. Red-winged Blackbird flocks and Fox Sparrows sang the pleasant, breezy day to sleep as distant “peent” calls of the American Woodcock began.
Fifteen minutes or so later, under indigo and starlight, the birds shot themselves out of the grasses and over the participants’ heads. The species’ extravagant courtship ritual was seen and heard in all its glory, multiple males shooting their adorably awkward selves into space to woo females below. It was yet another magical evening for this group of new friends. We want to give special thanks to Fishers Parks for allowing us to spend a bit of our evening in their preserve.