Woodcocks are a type of bird whose eyes are on the sides of their heads, allowing them to have 360 degree vision. The woodcock has become a popular game bird, causing the populations to decrease due to overhunting. The meat of the woodcock causes a potential risk of saturnism, especially to pregnant women and their fetus, and children.
The feathers of the woodcock are often used as brush tips by artists for fine painting work. Even though some types of woodcock are extinct, scientists have discovered fossil records of woodcocks that date as far back to somewhere between 5 and 10 million years ago.
