Studying Snipe

It was almost dark when I saw the Wilson's Snipe on Saturday, and although only 6 feet in front of the hide at Lower Moors, it was on its own with no Common Snipe for comparison. Better birders than me had clinched the ID with close views of the diagnostic features, and with the help of better photographers, but I was keen to see if I could see and photograph any of them for myself.

Common Snipe (left) and Wilson's Snipe (right)

Common Snipe (left) and Wilson's Snipe (right)

Locating the bird at Lower Moors was quite easy when Common Snipe were present even for non-experts like me, given the more contrasting, less rufous appearance of the Wilson's (see first and second photos). While helpful pointers, however, these differences are not necessarily diagnostic, and a similarly pale Snipe here a few years ago, suspected as a Wilson's, was eventually confirmed as a Common. Several people commented that the head pattern was reminiscent of Jack Snipe and I could see what they meant. The bill also looked shorter, though I guess this could be explained by differences in sizes rather than species.

Wilson's Snipe - showing part of underwing pattern

 

Wilson's Snipe - underwing pattern

The literature I had read highlighted the key differences as being in the secondary tips, underwing and tail patterns. The light was a bit better today than on my first visit, though the bird more distant. Still, the third and fourth photos above show the strongly barred, darker underwing compared to Common Snipe. The white line on the tips of the secondaries, visible in the fourth photo above, is said to be narrower than Common Snipe though this is difficult to judge without direct comparison, and while it doesn't look particularly narrow in this picture it may be exaggerated by the blur from shooting at a low shutter speed. Yes kids, the camera does sometimes lie. I couldn't get any clear pictures of the tail to show the differentiators there but it was educational to study the bird anyway, even for someone with my tiny attention span.

While googling Wilson's v Common ID features I stumbled across this blog post from the opposite end of the telescope, as it were - a North American trying to clinch Common Snipe ID by comparison to Wilson's - an interesting perspective on the ID conundrum. I live and learn. And pray I never have to claim one myself.

Wilson's Snipe - the rufous in the tail and behind the eye really stood out in
otherwise more contrasting, less rufous plumage than Common Snipe