Swinhoe's snipe, (''Gallinago megala''), also known as forest snipe or Chinese snipe, is a medium-sized (length 27–29 cm, wingspan 38–44 cm, weight 120 gm), long-billed,
migratory wader.
The common name commemorates the British naturalist
Robert Swinhoe
Robert Swinhoe FRS (1 September 1836 – 28 October 1877) was an English diplomat and naturalist who worked as a Consul in Formosa. He catalogued many Southeast Asian birds, and several, such as Swinhoe's pheasant, are named after him.
Bio ...
who
first described the species in 1861.
Identification
It is identifiable as a ''Gallinago'' snipe by its cryptically patterned black, brown, buff and white plumage, but it is not easily distinguished from
Latham's and
pin-tailed snipe
Pintail snipe head and bill
The pin-tailed snipe or pintail snipe (''Gallinago stenura'') is a species of bird in the family Scolopacidae, the sandpipers.
Distribution
It breeds in northern Russia and migrates to spend the non-breeding season i ...
in the field. The species is commonly referred to as a ''cho suekyung'' in South Korea.
Distribution
It breeds mainly in central and southern
Siberia and
Mongolia. The entire population migrates and spends the non-breeding season principally in eastern and southern
India,
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
, south-eastern
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
South-East Asia and
New Guinea. It has been recorded on migration in eastern China and occasionally in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Records in Australia are mainly from the
Top End of the
Northern Territory and from north-western
Western Australia.
Habitat
Breeding habitat: forest glades and meadows. Non-breeding habitat: shallow freshwater
wetlands of various kinds including
paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded field (agriculture), field of arable land used for growing Aquatic plant, semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in sout ...
s and
sewage farms, with bare mud or shallow water for feeding, with nearby vegetation cover.
Food
Mainly small invertebrates including
earthworms,
mollusks and
insects.
Breeding
Display flights and
drumming by the males.
Conservation
Because of wide range and no evidence of significant population decline, the species is assessed as being of
least concern.
References
* BirdLife International. (2006). Species factsheet: ''Gallinago megala''. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 9 February 2007
* Higgins, P.J.; & Davies, J.N. (eds). (1996). ''Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Volume 3: Snipe to Pigeons''. Oxford University Press: Melbourne.
* Lane, Brett; & Davies, Jeff. (1987). ''Shorebirds in Australia''. RAOU: Melbourne.
*
National Photographic Index of Australian Wildlife. (1987). ''The Shorebirds of Australia''. Angus & Robertson: Sydney.
Further reading
Identification
* Carey, Geoff and Urban Olsson (1995) Field Identification of Common, Wilson's, Pintail and Swinhoe's Snipes ''
Birding World'' 8(5): 179-190
{{Taxonbar , from=Q371582
Swinhoe's snipe
Swinhoe's snipe, (''Gallinago megala''), also known as forest snipe or Chinese snipe, is a medium-sized (length 27–29 cm, wingspan 38–44 cm, weight 120 gm), long-billed, migratory wader.
The common name commemorates the British na ...
Shorebirds
Birds of Manchuria
Birds of Mongolia
Birds of North Asia
Migratory birds (Eastern Hemisphere)
Birds described in 1861
Taxa named by Robert Swinhoe