Great Snipe
Gallinago media
Silhouette: Jamie Whitehouse · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
- FamilyScolopacidae (Sandpipers and Allies)
- GenusGallinago (Typical Snipes)
- SpeciesGallinago media (Great Snipe)
About the Great Snipe
The great snipe (Gallinago media) is a small stocky wader in the genus Gallinago. This bird's breeding habitat is marshes and wet meadows with short vegetation in northeastern Europe and northern Asia, from Scandinavia and Poland east across northern Russia to western Siberia, and south to northern Kazakhstan. Great snipe are migratory, wintering in tropical Africa. The European breeding population is in steep decline.
The great snipe was described by the English naturalist John Latham in 1787 with the binomial name Scolopax media. The name of the current genus Gallinago is Neo-Latin for a woodcock or snipe from Latin gallina, "hen" and the suffix -ago, "resembling". The specific media is Latin for "intermediate", because this species is intermediate in size between the woodcock and the common snipe.
At 26–30 cm (10–12 in) in length and a 43–50 cm (17–20 in) wingspan, adults are slightly larger, but noticeably bulkier, than the common snipe and have a 6–7 cm bill, shorter than that of common snipe. The bird's bulk is most evident in flight, more reminiscent of a woodcock than a common snipe. The body is mottled brown on top and barred underneath. They... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Great Snipe in Fertő-Hanság National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Fertő-Hanság National Park
Common Snipe
Gallinago gallinago
Eurasian Curlew
Numenius arquata
Ruff
Calidris pugnax
Common Redshank
Tringa totanus
Wood Sandpiper
Tringa glareola
Spotted Redshank
Tringa erythropus
Common Greenshank
Tringa nebularia
Dunlin
Calidris alpina
Black-tailed Godwit
Limosa limosa
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucos
Little Stint
Calidris minuta
Temminck's Stint
Calidris temminckii
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 2 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 3 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 5 | Kiskunság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 6 | Biebrza National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 7 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Great Snipe in Fertő-Hanság National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Great Snipe sighting in Fertő-Hanság National Park, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Great Snipe in Fertő-Hanság National Park?
April has the highest sighting rate for Great Snipe in Fertő-Hanság National Park in our monthly data.