Sometimes it’s only when you stop searching that you finally find what you’ve been looking for. I was just listening to a pair of song thrushes duelling in the evening hills when I heard a loud croaking. But this was no amphibian. The sound was coming from above. Looking up, I saw a large pigeon-sized bird passing high overhead. As it disappeared from view, the resonant rasping faded. Could it be a woodcock? Heart pounding, I waited. Sure enough, there it was again; this time I could see it more clearly.