Pin-tailed Snipe - BirdForum Opus

Alternative name: Pintail Snipe

Photo © by Peter Ericsson
Lumlukka, Thailand

Gallinago stenura

Identification

25-27 cm (9¾-10½ in)

Mottled brown upperparts with cream lines
Pale underparts
Buff breast with streaks
White belly
Dark eye stripe, with lighter stripes above and below
Greenish-grey legs
Long straight dark bill

Sexes similar

Demonstrating the narrow tail feathers causing the name
Photo © by peterarras
UAE December 2012 (click on photo to see large version)

Similar Species

Latham's Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe

Distribution

Breeds in Siberia; winters from South-east Asia to Indonesia and The Philippines.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species¹.

Habitat

Damp marshes and tundra.

Behaviour

Photo © by SeeToh
Pulau Punggol Barat, December 2015

Breeding

They nest in a well-hidden location on the ground. Eggs are laid from late May to mid-June.

Diet

They forage in mud or soft soil, probing for insects molluscs, earthworms and larvae; some plant material, including seeds are also taken at times..

References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved December 2015)
Wikipedia

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Pin-tailed Snipe. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Pin-tailed_Snipe

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