Spoon-billed Sandpiper vs African Snipe

Calidris pygmaea compared with Gallinago nigripennis

Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribute Spoon-billed Sandpiper African Snipe
Scientific Name Calidris pygmaea Gallinago nigripennis
Order Charadriiformes Charadriiformes
Family Scolopacidae Scolopacidae
Conservation Status Critically Endangered Least Concern
Length
Wingspan 19.9 cm (7.8 in) 25.1 cm (9.9 in)
Weight 31.75 g (1.12 oz) 124.25 g (4.38 oz)
Diet -- --
Clutch Size 3-4 2-4
Population Trend

Habitat Comparison

Shared Habitats

Spoon-billed Sandpiper only

None

African Snipe only

Conservation Status

Critically Endangered

Spoon-billed Sandpiper

Least Concern

African Snipe

About These Birds

Spoon-billed Sandpiper

Spoon-billed Sandpiper: 14–16 cm, tiny Arctic sandpiper with a unique spatula-tipped bill used for sweeping invertebrates from soft mud. Critically Endangered; total population under 300 pairs. Breeds on Chukotka, Russia; winters on mudflats of Bangladesh and Myanmar. Threatened by habitat loss and hunting. CR. International conservation priority.

African Snipe

African Snipe: 25–28 cm, medium-large snipe resident in high-altitude wetlands, bogs, and marshy grassland of eastern and southern Africa from Ethiopia and Sudan to the Cape. Cryptic brown-and-buff streaking. Probes soft mud for invertebrates. Sedentary. Performs display 'drumming' flights with spread tail in breeding season.

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