The Subantarctic snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica'') is a species of

snipe A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/camouflaging plumage. The ''Gallinago'' snipes have a near ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

subantarctic The sub-Antarctic zone is a region in the Southern Hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46° and 60° south of the Equator. The subantarctic region includes many islands ...

islands. The Maori call it "Tutukiwi". The nominate race ''C. a. aucklandica'' (

Auckland snipe The Auckland snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica aucklandica''), also known as the Auckland Island snipe, is a small bird in the sandpiper family. It is the isolated nominate subspecies of the subantarctic snipe that is endemic to the Auckland Isl ...

) is found on the

Auckland Islands The Auckland Islands (Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island, ...

(excluding the main island). Other subspecies include ''C. a. meinertzhagenae'' (

Antipodes snipe The Antipodes snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica meinertzhagenae''), also known as the Antipodes Island snipe, is an isolated subspecies of the Subantarctic snipe that is endemic to the Antipodes Islands, a subantarctic island group south of New ...

) from the

Antipodes Islands The Antipodes Islands ( Maōri: Moutere Mahue; "Abandoned island") are inhospitable and uninhabited volcanic islands in subantarctic waters to the south of – and territorially part of – New Zealand. The 21 km2 archipelago lies 860 ...

, and ''C. a. perseverance'' (

Campbell snipe The Campbell snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica perseverance''), also known as the Campbell Island snipe, is a rare subspecies of the Subantarctic snipe, endemic to Campbell Island, a subantarctic island south of New Zealand in the Southern Ocea ...

) from Campbell Island. The former subspecies from the

Snares Islands The Snares Islands / Tini Heke, known colloquially as The Snares, is a group of uninhabited islands lying about 200 km south of New Zealand's South Island and to the south-southwest of Stewart Island / Rakiura. The Snares consist of the m ...

has been separated as a full species, the

Snares snipe The Snares snipe (''Coenocorypha huegeli''), also known as the Snares Island snipe, or tutukiwi in Māori, is a species of bird in the sandpiper family, Scolopacidae. Taxonomy and etymology The Snares Island snipe is one of a group of birds of s ...

(''C. huegeli''), as have the extinct

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

(''C. iredalei'') and North Island snipes (''C. barrierensis'').

Description

The Subantarctic snipe is a small wading bird with adults growing to about in length. It has

cryptic Cryptic may refer to: In science: * Cryptic species complex, a group of species that are very difficult to distinguish from one another * Crypsis, the ability of animals to blend in to avoid observation * Cryptic era, earliest period of the Earth ...

brown plumage, sturdy legs and a slender beak about long. The head is striped in black and reddish brown and the body is brown, mottled with black and reddish brown.

Distribution

The Subantarctic snipe is endemic to certain islands to the south of New Zealand. Each island or group of islands has its own subspecies. New Zealand formerly had two mainland species of snipe, but both of these are extinct. The South Island snipe (''C. iredalei'') became extinct on Jacky Lee Island when the flightless

weka The weka, also known as the Māori hen or woodhen (''Gallirallus australis'') is a flightless bird species of the rail family. It is endemic to New Zealand. It is the only extant member of the genus ''Gallirallus''. Four subspecies are recognize ...

was introduced and on

Big South Cape Island Big South Cape Island or Taukihepa is an offshore island of New Zealand to the west of the southern tip of Stewart Island / Rakiura. The island has no permanent inhabitants but muttonbirders visit the island to catch the sooty shearwater, known i ...

(both the former and the latter muttonbird islands south of Stewart Island), its last refuge after

black rat The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...

s (''Rattus rattus'') arrived there in 1964. The last North Island Snipe (''C. barrierensis'') was seen in 1870 on Little Barrier Island. The Campbell Island Snipe (''C. a. perseverance'') were nearly extinguished but a few remained on an outlying islet and recolonised the main island when rats were exterminated there. A further two subspecies are the Antipodes snipe(''C. a. meinertzhagenae'') on the

and the Auckland Island snipe(''C. a. aucklandica'') on the

. The Snares Island snipe (''Coenocorypha huegeli'') was formerly thought to be a subspecies of the Subantarctic snipe, but is now recognised as a separate species.

Behaviour

The Subantarctic snipe seldom flies, is relatively tame and nests on the ground and this puts it at risk of

predation Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the ...

by land-based predators. It favours areas of dense ground cover and feeds on a range of invertebrates. It has a characteristic courtship display which takes place at night when males make vertical dives from considerable heights. Nesting takes place at different dates between August and January on the different islands.

References

* Miskelly, Colin M. (1987): The identity of the hakawai. '' Notornis'' 34(2): 95-116
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* Miskelly, Colin M.; Bell, Elizabeth A.; Elliott, Graeme P. & Walker, Kath J. (2006): 'Hakawai' aerial displaying by three populations of subantarctic snipe (genus ''Coenocorypha''). ''Notornis'' 53(4): 375–381
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q1260945 Endemic birds of New Zealand Coenocorypha Birds described in 1845 Taxa named by George Robert Gray Shorebirds