Sandpipers · Shorebirds
Great Snipe
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Gallinago media
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Voice
Song
How to recognize it
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27–29 cm long, stocky build
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Mottled brown upperparts, pale underparts
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Two white wing stripes; dark stripe from bill to eye
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When flushed, flies straight and far, then drops into vegetation
About the species
Mottled brown above and pale, barred below, the Great Snipe blends into marsh vegetation. A dark stripe runs from the base of its bill through the eye, and its short, strong bill gives the face a blunt profile. In flight, a pale bar across the broad wings is easier to see.
At dusk in the breeding season, males gather to display. They stand upright with chest puffed and tail fanned, sometimes springing into the air as they rattle, click, buzz and whistle. Away from the display, the call is a faint "yeah"; when flushed, it flies straight for some distance before dropping back into cover.
It breeds in wet meadows and marshes with short vegetation across northern Eurasia. It probes soft mud or picks food from the surface, mainly insects and earthworms, with occasional plant matter. After breeding, it migrates to sub-Saharan Africa, making long nonstop flights between the two regions.
Did you know?
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Feeds from roadside puddles
Before dawn and after dusk Great Snipe slip out to feed on open mud, wet grass and even puddles standing on dirt roads.
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Straight to Africa in days
The Great Snipe skips the shoreline-hopping route and crosses straight to tropical Africa in a matter of days.
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Only snipe that sings on the ground
Every other snipe sings on the wing in a rollercoaster dive that hums or whines through spread tail feathers — only the Great Snipe puts its display on the ground instead.
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Where to find
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On short, wet meadows in northeastern Europe and northwestern Russia, look for a Great Snipe probing soft mud for insects and worms.
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At marshes during the breeding season, listen at dusk for males displaying at a lek with rattles, clicks, buzzes and whistles.
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In dense cover along wet river lowlands, watch for a straight flight over a considerable distance after a flush, followed by a drop back into vegetation.
