IDENTIFICATION

VOCALISATIONS

The typical flight call when flushed is a harsh and sudden ‘skarp’, sometimes presaged by a less frantic and more rolling ‘skrrrp’; both calls can be heard on this recording.

DISTRIBUTION & HABITAT PREFERENCE

The preferred habitat is vegetated freshwater marsh with the prime site in this respect being the wet agricultural fields and freshwater marsh at Long Valley, where most records and high counts are made. Other freshwater areas in the northern and northeastern New Territories, Sai Kung and on Lantau regularly hold birds, with occasional records at a variety of other sites such as grassy areas at the former and present airports of Kai Tak and Chek Lap Kok respectively, and Sha Tin Racecourse. It also occurs at migration sites such as Po Toi and Ho Man Tin. There is only one record from HK Island, at Stanley on 5 April 1976. Aymas (1930) stated that it was to be found in the saline paddy fields and salt marshes around Deep Bay.

OCCURRENCE

Common Snipe is present from September to April (Figure 1), and, except during early autumn when it is outnumbered by both Pin-tailed and Swinhoe’s Snipes, is the most numerous of the three in HK. The earliest autumn record is of one at Mai Po on 18 August 2018, though in most years the first migrants are noted during the last week of August. The main period of autumn passage occurs from the third week of September, peaking in the third week of October; the highest autumn count is 130 at Long Valley on 11 October 2007.

Counts of 200 on 14 December 1986 and 106 on 12 December 1993 indicate that the wintering population is established by at least mid-December, though presumably earlier. Numbers appear to decline slowly during the winter, possibly in response to the gradual drying out of wetland areas or natural mortality. The highest count is 212 during Deep Bay winter waterbird counts on 11 January 1987 and 14 January 1990.

An increase in numbers in the first week of March may indicate the commencement of spring passage, which remains constant for the first three weeks of the month. The highest count in spring is 130 on 23 March 1993. Numbers decline from the last week of March and there are few records after the first week of May, all involving only one or two birds. The latest record is of one on 28 May 1980. There have been no records during the summer months.

Vaughan and Jones (1913) stated that Common Snipe appeared in great numbers on spring and autumn migrations with some wintering in favoured localities. Extreme dates were 25 August and 5 May although it could be noted in Canton market as early as 8 August. The preferred habitats were paddy fields and marshes. Aymas (1930) stated that Common Snipe was ‘not plentiful locally’ and was to be found from December to February in the saline paddy fields and salt marshes of Deep Bay. Herklots (1967) stated that it was most abundant from early September to mid-October but was much rarer from then to February. The loss of paddy fields in HK may have significantly reduced numbers occurring.

While the peak counts of Common Snipe in Hong Kong have occurred in winter, the population at this time is stable and more restricted in terms of the localities due to the drying out of seasonal wetlands. Thus, the comments of Vaughan and Jones and Herklots (which in themselves were partly based on the perceptions of local hunters) do not necessarily contradict the present perception as turnover exists among birds on spring and autumn migration.

BEHAVIOUR, FORAGING & DIET

Forages by probing its bill fairly deeply into soft mud. Appears to be crepuscular or forage at night and roost in the daytime in undisturbed areas of the wetland, even if dry.

Trapping at Chau Tau (formerly called Lok Ma Chau) during 1989-92 showed this species to be, in part at least, site-faithful. One bird trapped there on 2 January 1989 was retrapped on 29 October 1990 (Melville 1991); three trapped on 27 October 1990 were retrapped there on 20 January 1991 and 3 February 1991 (Melville and Galsworthy 1992); and four birds captured in November 1992 had originally been caught in January 1989, October 1990 and January 1991 (Melville and Galsworthy 1993). A bird trapped at Chau Tau on 2 January 1989 was retrapped at Mai Po on 25 March of the same year, illustrating that some birds make local movements during the winter.

RANGE & SYSTEMATICS

Breeds across the Palearctic from western Europe to Kamchatka between approximately 45^oN and 70^oN, further south in Central Asia; present all year in western Europe, but most birds winter in southern Europe, north and sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia and southerly parts of east Asia (Van Gils et al. 2020). In China breeds in northern Xinjiang and the northeast and winters south of the Yangtze (Liu and Chen 2020).

The nominate subspecies occupies most of its range, including HK. G. g. faroeensis occurs on islands in northern Europe.

CONSERVATION STATUS

IUCN: Least Concern. Population trend decreasing.