Page 199 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

WADERS
Order Charadriiformes Family Scolopacidae Species Lymnocryptes minimus
Jack Snipe striped crown

with black centre
looks very dark
broad bright on upperside
cream stripes bill shorter
short on back than
tail Snipe’s
striped, green-
glossed back
bill angled
pale edge down
of hind-
wings
streaked
IN FLIGHT flanks

FLIGHT: quite slow, almost flitting compared with
Snipe’s; wings angled back.
hile Snipe are generally skulking
Wbut often feed in the open, Jack Snipe short
almost never do, keeping to the depths of deep greenish legs
vegetation in very wet places.These handsome little birds
are generally seen as they fly up, practically only when they
are almost trodden on, and even then they go just a short
distance before dropping down again. Close views on the
ground are mostly restricted to spells of very cold weather
when they are forced into unexpected places or stand out
on ice.Wintering birds regularly appear at traditional places
year after year, even in very small, marshy spots near pools
or at the upper edge of estuarine salt marshes. In favoured
spots, groups of ten or twenty Jack Snipe may feed in loose
flocks, flying up singly.
VOICE Usually quiet; muffled “galloping” og-ogok og-ogok
sound in display flight.
NESTING Hollow in dry hummock of grass or moss in
bog; 4 eggs; 1 brood; May–July. WELL HIDDEN
FEEDING Walks forward with bouncy action, probing for The Jack Snipe feeds in dense vegetation in wet places and is
insect larvae, worms, and seeds. very difficult to see on the ground.
SIMILAR SPECIES OCCURRENCE
Breeds in northern bogs; more
SNIPE pale central much plainer from southerly in winter. Outside the
calls when stripe on head to back
flushed; crown breeding season, in very wet
see p.196 grass, rushy places with standing
water and mud, edges of
reedbeds, and upper edges of
longer weedy salt marshes, in deep cover.
bill
DUNLIN Seen in the UK
see p.178 JF M A M J JA S O N D
Length 17–19cm (6 1 ⁄2 –7 1 ⁄2in) Wingspan 30–36cm (12–14in) Weight 35–70g (1 1 ⁄4 –2 1 ⁄2oz)
Social Small flocks Lifespan 5–10 years Status Vulnerable†
197