The Proceedings of the Eleventh American Woodcock Symposium held at the Ralph A. McMullan Center in Roscommon, Michigan on 24–27 October 2017

Like previous symposia, this symposium contained a mix of abstracts, philosophical ('give 'em hell Harry!') presentations, technical papers, reviews, and short communications and reports about the European woodcock. The symposium also served as a platform for the implementation of the American Woodcock Management Plan through workshops and the formal signing of a cooperative agreement.

Woodcock are one of the oddest birds in North America. They are a shorebird that got lost and ended up in the scrubby parts of the forest, and look like they were put together with the leftover parts of other birds. Oddities aside, each spring they rise to great beauty with their sky dance at dusk. Greg Hoch combines natural history, land management, scientific knowledge, and personal observation to examine this little game bird. Woodcock have a complex life history and the management of their habitat is also complex. The health of this bird can be considered a key indicator of what good forests look like.