Greater Godwit: description, habitat, interesting facts, photos

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:54

Nesting in swampy landscapes and damp plains, this bird lives in vast areas stretching from Iceland to the Far East. Wintering places cover regions of many continents - Africa, Southern and Western Europe, Southeast and South Asia, Australia.

This is a marsh sandpiper, or a large godwit (a photo of the bird is presented in the article) - a large variety of sandpiper, which is part of the Snipe family.

General information

Due to the reduction of suitable areas for breeding, the godwit is included in the International Red Book as part of the threatened group (category NT). The nesting range covers the latitudes of the temperate northern hemisphere, from Iceland (west) to the Anadyr River basin and Primorye (east), but to a greater extent it consists of a large number of isolated areas. In the regions of Western Europe, east of France and Great Britain, the bird is distributed sporadically (not regularly and not constantly), and is found only in some areas whereswamps and wet uncultivated meadows. The only exception is the Netherlands, where the godwit has a common distribution area. Outside the mainland, it breeds in Iceland, as well as on the islands of Shetland, Faroe and Lofoten. More often and in large numbers, these birds are found in Eastern Europe, since in these regions the least land has been converted to agricultural needs.

Description

The godwit is a very graceful large sandpiper with a relatively small head, long legs and beak. In size, it is comparable to a medium-sized curlew, but the physique of the former is more slender. The body length is approximately 36-44 cm with a body weight of 160 to 500 g. The wingspan is from 70 to 82 cm. Males are slightly smaller than females (on average 280 and 340 grams, respectively), and their beak is shorter.

During the mating season, the godwit's head, front of the chest and neck are painted in a rusty-red color. The upper part of the head has longitudinal stripes of a dark brown color, and there are also strokes of the same shade from the sides. The back of the godwit is variegated: on a black-brown background there are red transverse spots and grayish-brown streaks. The upperwing coverts are greyish-brown, while the wing-coverts are black-brown with white bases.

Habitat

The godwit breeds in swampy and moist biotopes with soft ground and tall grasses. Sometimes they can also be found on sandy bald spots - riverswampy valleys and wet meadows without woody vegetation. They also live on the shores of lakes, in pastures, grassy swamps and on the outskirts of the moors. And also in territories from the forest-tundra in the north to the steppe zones in the south.

In Iceland, the bird prefers to settle in swamps overgrown with dwarf birch and sedge. After the end of the nesting period, the godwit often moves to even more damp areas - irrigation fields, as well as to the marshy shores of reservoirs and s alt marshes and estuaries flooded during high tides. Wintering occurs in similar habitats, including sandy beaches, muddy shores of sea lagoons, and paddy fields.

Singing and eating

The godwit is a noisy bird during the breeding season. During the current period, she emits a sharp nasal and lingering cry of “take-off”, which gradually accelerates. On the fly, it can make a thin, but slightly raspy "who-why" sound, slightly reminiscent of the voice of a lapwing. The alarm signal is a sharp nasal and lingering "spindle-spindle", thanks to which it got its Russian name.

The bird feeds on small crustaceans, spiders, mollusks, aquatic insects and their larvae, bivalves, polychaete and annelids, a little less often - fish eggs and frog eggs, as well as tadpoles. Grasshoppers and other locusts predominate in the food of these birds during the nesting season in many areas. In wintering areas and during migration, they also consume plant foods - rice grains, seeds and berries.

Foraging on land withthe surface of grass, earth, or by plunging the beak into the ground. In water, they feed in shallow water, entering the water up to their shoulders and looking for prey either on the muddy bottom or on the surface. Cocktails are social birds, and usually feed in large groups, and sometimes together with herbalists.

Nesting characteristics

The breeding season runs from April to June. The majority of birds start breeding at the age of two. Sandpipers usually arrive at nesting sites in groups and settle in small colonies, which include from 2 to 20 pairs.

The place for the nest is chosen by the male. Displaying is a rather spectacular performance that takes place in the area where the nest is located: males fly, swaying from side to side, and striking alternately with one or the other wing. And also they make deep dives, making nasal lingering sounds. Alien males that have flown into this territory are unceremoniously driven out of it.

Chicks

Usually this bird has 3-5 olive-green or reddish-brown eggs with large superficial olive-brown and deep gray spots. The eggs are incubated by the female and male for about 24 days. In the event of the appearance of any enemies, the parents protect their nest - making loud cries, they fly out to meet them. They can also engage in aerial combat with feathered predators. They also guard neighboring nests.

The godwit chicks immediately after hatching have a yellowish-buffy down with a dark pattern. After drying, they leavenest. They feed with their parents in swamps and on the banks of reservoirs. After about 30 days, they become winged, and in July, the female with grown chicks is the first to leave the nest. The male usually flies after them after a few days. The maximum lifespan of this bird in Europe is just over 23 years.

Some interesting facts

This bird belongs to monogamous species. Thanks to the research of English specialists, it turned out that, despite the annual disintegration of pairs of great godwit and wintering at considerable distances from each other, these birds converge every spring in their former nesting places. This happens only if each of the birds of one pair arrives in the interval of three days. Otherwise, the birds find new partners.

It is important to remember that not only the black-tailed godwit is included in the International Red Book. The Red Books of many regions of Russia and Western Europe also include this interesting bird. On the territory of Russia, it is an object of hunting during its autumn migration, although some environmentalists advocate a ban on hunting for it.