Common Snipe
Gallinago gallinago
Also known as: Snipe, Chaga, Fantail Snipe
Habitat
Ground
Diet
Invertebrate
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
113 g
About This Species
Look for this well-camouflaged wading bird probing soft mud and marsh edges with its long bill, often staying hidden in vegetation until it flushes suddenly with a sharp call and zigzagging flight. Listen at dusk in spring for the distinctive winnowing sound made by air rushing through its tail feathers during display flights over breeding wetlands. Spring evenings on breeding wetlands and migration periods at muddy marsh edges offer the best chances of a sighting.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Approach wetland edges slowly and stay at least 20 metres back, since this species relies on camouflage and flushes explosively when startled, which can flag its location to predators.
- Wild bird protections across its wide range in Europe, Asia and parts of Africa generally cover breeding sites, though specific hunting and protection rules vary considerably by country.
- Avoid walking through breeding marshes in spring, when disturbance can cause birds to abandon a nest hidden in dense vegetation.
LCAvesCharadriiformesScolopacidae
Seasonal Activity
2,032,460 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Scolopacidae
Traits
- Diet
- Invertebrate
- Foraging
- Ground
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 113 g
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.