Bird Guide

Jack Snipe vs Wandering Tattler

Jack Snipe (Lymnocryptes minimus)

Jack Snipe

Lymnocryptes minimus

Small50 gWetland

Adults are smaller than common snipes and have relatively shorter bills. The bird's length is 18–25 cm (7.1–9.8 in), wingspan is 30–41 cm (12–16 in) and weight is 33–73 g (1.2–2.6 oz). The body is mottled brown on top and pale underneath. Jack snipes have a dark stripe through the eye. The wings are pointed and narrow, and yellow back stripes are visible in flight. When seen, the distinctive bobbing movement, as if the bird is on springs, has an almost hypnotic quality.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Sonothèque ADVL · CC0
Photo: Anton Thøger Larsen · CC BY 4.0
Wandering Tattler (Tringa incana)

Wandering Tattler

Tringa incana

Medium108 gWetland

The wandering tattler was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it in the genus Scolopax and coined the binomial name Scolopax incana. Gmelin based his description on the "ash-coloured snipe" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his book A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham's specimen had been supplied by the naturalist Joseph Banks.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: TRinaud · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

Learn this pair in BeakBrain

Photo and call practice, free in any browser.

Play BeakBrain

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Jack Snipe and Wandering Tattler.