Woodcock to draw bird-watchers to Wedington area this evening, Sunday, March 15, 2009

American Woodcock field trip Sunday March 15. Sponsored by Northwest
Arkansas Audubon Society.

The 450-acre Wedington Small Game Area is on the northwest
corner of the Wedington Unit of the Ozark-St. Francis NF, approx. 16
miles west of Fayetteville & approx. 4 miles east of Siloam Springs.
The 15,000-acre Wedington Unit is designated as an Urban Forest. We
will listen for & hopefully observe woodcocks in the small game area.

From the intersection of HWY 412 and Interstate 540 in Springdale, go
west approx. 13.2 miles on HWY 412. Note that Kincheloe Road bisects
412, with turns north AND south. If you are driving from Springdale,
you will first pass Kincheloe Rd on your north at approx. 12.6-12.7
miles; don't turn. Keep going another 0.5 miles and turn left SOUTH
onto Kincheloe Road and travel WEST for approx. 1.3 miles to Forest
Service road 1754 (on the right). We will meet at this intersection
(Kincheloe and FS 1754) promptly at 5:30 PM. (if you arrive late,
drive 1754 & find us ? we will be less than a mile away on the road).
Bring a chair, since we will sit and wait for the woodcock displays to
begin near and shortly after sunset. LOTS of other birds are in the
area to enjoy during the wait. Mosquitoes could be out & about if the
weather is warm. Sunset is 7:25 PM.

View Larger Map
Overall, this should be a fairly easy trip for most folks, including
those with walking impairments. The woodcock displays should be
viewable/audible from where we park. Maps: if you use Google Earth,
type Kincheloe Road Siloam Springs, AR into the search. This will
produce a map of this area. There is also a map of the Wedington Unit
at:
http://www.agfc.com/!userfiles/pdfs/wma_lake_maps/Wedington%20WMA%20Map.pdf

JOSEPH C. NEAL in Fayetteville, Arkansas.