Bird Guide

Noble Snipe vs Swinhoe's Snipe

Noble Snipe (Gallinago nobilis)

Noble Snipe

Gallinago nobilis

Medium192 gWetland

This 30–32.5 cm long snipe has a stocky body and relatively short legs for a wader. Its upperparts, head and neck are streaked and patterned with dark brown and buff, and gold edges to the feathers form distinct lines down its back. The belly is white with brown barring on the flanks. The horn-coloured bill is very long and straight. The legs and feet are greyish-green. The sexes are similar, but females are longer billed; immature birds differ only in showing pale fringes on the wing coverts. The noble snipe has a clear melodious call.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Noble Snipe
Recorded by Niels Krabbe · Call, call when flushed · Cotopaxi: Laguna de Limpiopungo, Ecuador · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: (c) Christoph Moning, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Christoph Moning · cc-by
Swinhoe's Snipe (Gallinago megala)

Swinhoe's Snipe

Gallinago megala

Medium121 gWetland

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 in the field. The species is commonly referred to as a cho suekyung in South Korea.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Andrew Bazdyrev · CC BY 4.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Noble Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe.