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Common snipe

Thecommon snipe(Gallinago gallinago) is a small, stockywadernative to theOld World.

Common snipe
Calls recorded inHampshire,England
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Scolopacidae
Genus: Gallinago
Species:
G. gallinago
Binomial name
Gallinago gallinago
Subspecies

G. g. faroeensis
G. g. gallinago

Range ofG. gallinago
Breeding
Resident
Non-breeding
Synonyms
  • Scolopax gallinagoLinnaeus, 1758
  • Capella gallinago(Linnaeus, 1758)

Distribution and habitat

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The breeding habitats aremarshes,bogs,tundraandwet meadowsthroughout thePalearctic.In the north, the distribution limit extends from Iceland over the north of the British Isles and northernFennoscandia,where it occurs at around 70°N, as well as through European Russia and Siberia. Here it is mostly on the northern edge of the Taiga zone at 71°N, but reaches 74°N on the east coast of theTaymyr Peninsula.In the east it extends to Anadyr,[clarification needed]Kamchatka,Bering Islandand theKuril Islands,The southern boundary of the distribution area in Europe runs throughnorthern Portugal,centralFrance,northern Italy,Bulgaria,andUkraine,with populations in the west being only very scattered. In Asia, the distribution extends south to northernTurkestan,locally toAfghanistanand the Middle East, through theAltaiand further toManchuriaandUssuri.It ismigratory,with European birds wintering in southern and western Europe andAfrica(south to the Equator), and Asian migrants moving to tropicalsouthern Asia.

Taxonomy

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The common snipe wasformally describedby the Swedish naturalistCarl Linnaeusin 1758 in thetenth editionof hisSystema Naturaeunder thebinomial nameScolopax gallinago.[2]The species is now placed with 17 other snipe in thegenusGallinagothat was introduced by the French zoologistMathurin Jacques Brissonin 1760.[3][4]The namegallinagoisNeo-Latinfor awoodcockorsnipefromLatingallina,"hen" and the suffix-ago,"resembling".[5]

Twosubspeciesare recognised:[4]

  • G. g. faeroeensis(Brehm, CL, 1831) – breeds in Iceland,Faroe Islands,OrkneyandShetland Islands;non-breeding in British Isles
  • G. g. gallinago(Linnaeus, 1758) –nominate subspecies;breeds in central, north Europe and Asia; non-breeding in west Europe, Africa, Indonesia and Japan

The North AmericanWilson's snipewas previously considered the same species, and is listed as such in older field guides.

Description

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Egg

Adults are 25–27 cm (9.8–10.6 in) in length with a 44–47 cm (17–19 in) wingspan and a weight of 80–140 g (2.8–4.9 oz) (up to 180 g (6.3 oz) pre-migration). They have short greenish-grey legs and a very long (5.5–7 cm (2.2–2.8 in)) straight dark bill. The body is mottled brown with straw-yellow stripes on top and pale underneath. They have a dark stripe through the eye, with light stripes above and below it. The wings are pointed.[6][7]

The common snipe is the most widespread of several similar snipes. It most closely resembles theWilson's snipe(G. delicata) of North America, which was until recently considered to be a subspecies –G. g. delicata– of the common snipe. They differ in the number of tail feathers, with seven pairs inG. gallinagoand eight pairs inG. delicata;the North American species also has a slightly thinner white trailing edge to the wings (the white is mostly on the tips of the secondaries).[8][9]Both species breed in theAleutian Islands.[6]It is also very similar to thepin-tailed snipe(G. stenura) andSwinhoe's snipe(G. megala) of eastern Asia; identification of these species there is complex.[10]

The subspeciesfaeroeensisis normally more richly toned on the breast, its upperparts and the head than the nominategallinago.[11]

Behaviour

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G. g. gallinagoatKeoladeo National Park,Bharatpur,Rajasthan,India.
G. g. gallinagoat nature parkS'Albufera,on the island of Mallorca.

The common snipe is a well camouflaged bird, it is usually shy and conceals itself close to ground vegetation and flushes only when approached closely. When flushed, they utter a sharp note that sounds likescape, scapeand fly off in a series of aerial zig-zags to confuse predators.[12]They forage in soft mud, probing or picking up food by sight. They mainly eat insects and earthworms, also some plant material.[7]

Common snipe
An example of the "drumming" sound.
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The male performs "winnowing" display during courtship, flying high in circles and then taking shallow dives to produce a "drumming"sound by vibrating its tail feathers. This sound has been compared by others to the bleating of a sheep orgoat;hence in many languages the snipe is known by names signifying "flying goat", "heaven's ram", as in Scotland by "heather-bleater"[12]and inFinnishthe nametaivaanvuohi,"sky goat".

Philip Manson-Bahris credited with unravelling the mystery of how the snipe creates that unusual breathy sound which is unlike other birdsong.[when?]He worked out that the sound was created by placing out two tail feathers at 90 degrees to the direction of flight. When diving these feathers create this unusual sound. He demonstrated this in front of theBritish Ornithologists Unionby inserting two snipe feathers into a cork which he then whirled around his head on a string.[13]

Wing shape does not differ between sedentary and migratory common snipe, suggesting that social selection influences wing shape given this species aerial displays during courtship.[14]

Breeding

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Common snipe nest in a well-hidden location on the ground, laying four eggs of a dark olive colour, blotched and spotted with rich brown,[12]which are incubated by the female for 18–21 days. The freshly hatched young are covered in dark maroon down, variegated with black, white and buff.[12]The young are cared for by both parents, each parent looking after half the brood, with fledging in 10–20 days.[6][7]

Conservation

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Common Snipe at Chilika, Odisha

Overall, the species is not threatened. Populations on the southern fringes of the breeding range in Europe are however declining withlocal extinctionin some areas (notably in parts of England and Germany), mainly due to field drainage and agricultural intensification.[6]

TheAgreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA)applies to the species.[15]It is still hunted as agamebirdin much of its range.[6][verification needed]

History

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Old folk names include "mire snipe", "horse gowk", "heather bleat", and the variant spelling "snite".[16]Seesnipefor other aspects of the name.

References

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  1. ^BirdLife International (2019)."Gallinago gallinago".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.2019:e.T22693097A155504420.doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22693097A155504420.en.Retrieved12 November2021.
  2. ^Linnaeus, Carl(1758).Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis(in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 147.
  3. ^Brisson, Mathurin Jacques(1760).Ornithologie, ou, Méthode contenant la division des oiseaux en ordres, sections, genres, especes & leurs variétés(in French and Latin). Vol. 5. Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. pp. 298, 304.
  4. ^abGill, Frank;Donsker, David;Rasmussen, Pamela,eds. (July 2021)."Sandpipers, snipes, coursers".IOC World Bird List Version 11.2.International Ornithologists' Union.Retrieved22 November2021.
  5. ^Jobling, James A (2010).The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names.London: Christopher Helm. p.170.ISBN978-1-4081-2501-4.
  6. ^abcdedel Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi, eds. (1996).Handbook of the Birds of the World.Vol. 3: Hoatzin to Auks. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. p.496.ISBN84-87334-20-2.
  7. ^abcSnow, D.W.; Perrins, C.M. (1998).The Birds of the Western Palearctic.Vol. 1 (Concise ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-854099-X.
  8. ^Leader, P. (1999). "Identification forum: Common Snipe and Wilson's Snipe".Birding World.12(9): 371–374.
  9. ^Reid, M. (2008). "Identification of Wilson's and Common Snipe".British Birds.101(4): 189–200.
  10. ^Carey, G.; Olsson, U. (1995). "Field Identification of Common, Wilson's, Pintail and Swinhoe's Snipes".Birding World.8(5): 179–190.
  11. ^Reid, Martin (2008) "Identification of Wilson's and Common Snipe",British Birds 101,April, p. 190
  12. ^abcdOne or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Snipe".Encyclopædia Britannica(11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  13. ^Cocker, Mark (15 April 2012)."Unfolding the mysteries of a snipe's lovesong".The Guardian.London.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved7 June2017.
  14. ^Rodrigues, T. M.; Andrade, P.; Rodrigues, M.; Gonçalves, D. (2018). "Mixed patterns of morphological adaptation to insularity in an aerial displaying bird, the Common SnipeGallinago gallinago".Ibis.160(4): 870–881.doi:10.1111/ibi.12578.
  15. ^"Species".Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA).Retrieved14 November2021.
  16. ^Lockwood, W.B. (1984).The Oxford Book of British Bird Names.Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-214155-4.
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