THE EUROPEAN WOODCOCK (SCOLOPAX RUSTICOLA L.): REPORT ON A SEARCH OF THE LITERATURE SINCE 1940. By Monica Shorten. Game Conservancy Report No. 21. Shooting booklet.

1974 1st edition. Stapled paperback (147 x 210mm). Pp93 + 3pp notes. B/w photographs and illustrations, maps, 11 page bibliography.

This is a detailed review of research published up to time of going to press in the UK, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Chapters include: The European woodcock; Description; Moult; Age determination; Sex determination; Evolution; Classification; Distribution - world range, breeding distribution, wandering and wintering, breeding distribution and status in various countries, distribution and changes in status in the British Isles and Ireland; Feeding; Breeding - roding, pairing, nest, egg-laying, incubation, egg loss, number of broods; Growth and development; mortality; Parasites; Habitat; Migration - Britain and Ireland, other countries; The ringing of woodcock; Shooting records - Britain and Ireland, other countries; population structure and maintenance - sex ratio, age structure, longevity, productivity, life equations; Management and conservation; International co-operation; 11 page bibliography (in small type). Essential reading for anyone planning or carrying out research in to woodcock, or indeed even writing an essay or dissertation on the subject.