| Noble snipe | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: | Scolopacidae |
| Genus: | Gallinago |
| Species: | G. nobilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Gallinago nobilis P.L.Sclater, 1856 | |
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The noble snipe (Gallinago nobilis) is a small stocky wader. It breeds in the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela above or just below the treeline. It is entirely sedentary.
This 30–32.5 cm long snipe has a stocky body and relatively short legs for a wader. Its upperparts, head and neck are streaked and patterned with dark brown and buff, and gold edges to the feathers form distinct lines down its back. The belly is white with brown barring on the flanks. The horn-coloured bill is very long and straight. The legs and feet are greyish-green. The sexes are similar, but females are longer billed; immature birds differ only in showing pale fringes on the wing coverts. The noble snipe has a clear melodious call.
Andean snipe occurs within the range of noble snipe, but has broad wings, a barred belly and dark underparts. Migrant common and Magellan snipe are smaller, have more pointed wings and white trailing edged to the wings.
The noble snipe is found high altitude wet grassland marshes and swamps from 2,700 – 4,200 m.
Little is known of its biology, but it has an aerial display, which involves flying high in circles, followed by a powerful stoop during which the bird makes a drumming sound, caused by vibrations of modified outer tail feathers, lower pitched than that of common snipe. It breeds from March to July.
The noble snipe is usually alone or in pairs, but is difficult to observe on the ground. It forages by pushing its long bill deep into the mud seeking insects and worms. Its cryptic plumage provides effective camouflage when the bird stands motionless amongst marsh vegetation.
The common snipe is a small, stocky wader native to the Old World.
Wilson's snipe is a small, stocky shorebird. The genus name gallinago is New Latin for a woodcock or snipe from Latin gallina, "hen" and the suffix -ago, "resembling". The specific delicata is Latin for "dainty".
The long-billed dowitcher is a medium-sized shorebird with a relatively long bill belonging to the sandpiper family, Scolopacidae. In breeding plumage, adults are characterized by a beautiful rufous head and underparts with a darker mottled back and a large white upper rump only seen in flight. They feed in various freshwater habitats with their bill underwater in a "sewing machine" motion and are known to have an exciting mating display where males chase females in flight. The genus, Limnodromus is Ancient Greek from limne, "marsh" and dromos, "racer". The specific scolopaceus is New Latin for "snipe-like", from Latin scolopax, scolopacis, a snipe or woodcock. The English name is from Iroquois and was first recorded in 1841.
The jack snipe or jacksnipe is a small stocky wader. It is the smallest snipe, and the only member of the genus Lymnocryptes. Features such as its sternum make it quite distinct from other snipes or woodcocks.
The small pratincole, little pratincole, or small Indian pratincole, is a small wader in the pratincole family, Glareolidae.
The pin-tailed snipe or pintail snipe is a species of bird in the family Scolopacidae, the sandpipers.
The Pantanal snipe is a small, stocky wader found in South America.
The puna snipe is a small, stocky wader. It breeds in the Andes of northern Peru to northwestern Argentina and northern Chile. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the South American snipe.
The African snipe also known as the Ethiopian snipe, is a small stocky wader. It breeds in eastern and southern Africa in wet mountain moorland and swamps at altitudes of 1,700–4,000 m (5,600–13,100 ft). When not breeding it disperses widely, including into coastal lowlands.
The Madagascar snipe is a small stocky wader. It breeds only in the humid eastern half of Madagascar, from sea-level up to 2,700 m, being more common above 700 m. It is non-migratory.
The solitary snipe is a small stocky wader. It is found in the Palearctic from northeast Iran to Japan and Korea.
The Fuegian snipe also known as the cordilleran snipe, is a small stocky wader. It breeds in south-central Chile and Argentina south to Tierra del Fuego. It is mainly sedentary, but the Tierra del Fuego population winters in mainland Chile.
The Jameson's snipe or Andean snipe is a small, stocky wader. It breeds in the Andes in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. It appears to be entirely sedentary, with no evidence of migration.
The imperial snipe is a small stocky wader which breeds in the Andes. For a century it was known only from two specimens collected near Bogotá, Colombia, and was presumed extinct, but it was rediscovered in Peru in 1967 and Ecuador in 1988. It is not known if it is migratory.
The giant snipe is a stocky wader. It breeds in South America. The nominate subspecies G. u. undulata occurs in two distinct areas, one in Colombia, and the other from Venezuela through Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana to extreme north-eastern Brazil. The southern subspecies G. u. gigantea is found in eastern Bolivia, eastern Paraguay and south-east Brazil, and probably also in Uruguay and north-eastern Argentina.
