- Great Snipe
Taxobox
name = Great Snipe
status = NT | status_system = IUCN3.1
image_width = 200px
regnum =Animal ia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Aves
ordo =Charadriiformes
familia =Scolopacidae
genus = "Gallinago "
species = "G. media"
binomial = "Gallinago media"
binomial_authority = Latham,1787 The Great Snipe, "Gallinago media" is a small stockywader .This bird's breeding habitat is marshes and wet meadows with short vegetation in north eastern
Europe and north westernRussia . Great Snipes are migratory, wintering inAfrica . The European breeding population is in steep decline.The males display at a dusk lek during the breeding season, standing erect with chest puffed and tail fanned. They may jump into the air. They produce a variety of rattles, clicks, buzzes and whistles while displaying. 3-4 eggs are laid in a nest in a well-hidden location on the ground.
These birds forage in soft mud, probing or picking up food by sight. They mainly eat
insect s andearthworm s, and occasional plant material. They are difficult to see, being well camouflaged in their habitat. When flushed from cover, they fly straight for a considerable distance before dropping back into vegetation.At 26-30 cm in length and a 42-50 cm wingspan, adults are only slightly larger, but much bulkier, than
Common Snipe and have a shorter bill. The body is mottled brown on top and barred underneath. They have a dark stripe through the eye. The wings are broad, and a pale wingbar is visible in flight.The Great Snipe is one of the species to which the "Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds" (
AEWA ) applies.References
* Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened
External links
* [http://www.arkive.org/species/GES/birds/Gallinago_media/more_info.html ARKive] Images.
* [http://w1.500.telia.com/~u50004376/swanberg/sveip_eng.htm Great Snipe]
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