Wonderful little photo essay Garry and words to boot. And that top photo has me drooling. Gorgeous and thank you for sharing your experiences.

Well done Garry!! I'll send you a compilation of what we've done so far. You can do the same and we can compare notes and share what works and what doesn't.

Excellent! My plan for woodcock is pretty simple on our wooded acres -- cut trees. We try to make larger cuts correspond to any timber sales we conduct, but I place small temporary openings along trails now for my old age coverts. When I first started I focused on steep north facing slopes to insure the covert would stay damp. Now I'm focusing on flat sites with easier walking for an old guy with replacement joints. Sound familiar?:)

Has anyone seen a benefit to grouse habitat from the loss of all the ash trees? One small lot on our land was not logged due to the trees being too far gone but the understory has increased the past year due to more light and I heard a grouse drum all year which I never had in the past. Maybe there’s a silver lining there

Andy, I haven't read anything that suggests wide scale benefit, but it must have some positive impact. I know there were studies of the gypsy moth infestations and their possible relationship to grouse numbers.

We have the Emerald Ash Borer here in Missouri now, but we are still in the early stages of its spread. We have some ash on our farm, but they are not a dominant tree.

There is lots of talk and focus on Oak Decline across the country. Now that would have an incredible impact on many creatures in our Oak-Hickory forests.

Missouri tree farmer of the year is quite an accomplishment you two, congratulations. I bet your feeling awfully proud of that and your first woodcock on your property. How exciting for you both.