Black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa)

Aug 21, 2016 Features / Columnists, Interesting Creatures in Guyana

The black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa) is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the Limosa genus, the godwits. There are three subspecies, all with orange head, neck and chest in breeding plumage and dull grey-brown winter colouration, and distinctive black and white wingbar at all times.
Its breeding range stretches from Iceland through Europe and areas of central Asia.
Black-tailed godwits spend winter in areas as diverse as the Indian Subcontinent, Australia, western Europe and west Africa. The species breeds in fens, lake edges, damp meadows, moorlands and bogs and use sestuaries, swamps and floods in winter; it is more likely to be found inland and on freshwater than the similar bar-tailed godwit.
The world population is estimated to be 634,000 to 805,000 birds and is classified as Near Threatened.
The black-tailed godwit is a large wader with long bill (7.5 to 12 cm (3.0 to 4.7 in) long), neck and legs. During the breeding season, the bill has a yellowish or orange-pink base and dark tip; the base is pink in winter. The legs are dark grey, brown or black.
The sexes are similar, but in breeding plumage, they can be separated by the male’s brighter, more extensive orange breast, neck and head. In winter, adult black-tailed godwits have a uniform brown-grey breast and upperparts (in contrast to the bar-tailed godwit’s streaked back). Juveniles have a pale orange wash to the neck and breast.
In flight, its bold black and white wingbar and white rump can be seen readily. When on the ground it can be difficult to separate from the similar Bar-tailed Godwit, but the black-tailed godwit’s longer, straighter bill and longer legs are diagnostic. Black-tailed godwits are similar in body size and shape to bar-taileds, but stand taller.
It measures 42 cm (17 in) from bill to tail with a wingspan of 70–82 cm (28–32 in). Males weigh around 280 g (9.9 oz) and females 340 g (12 oz). The female is around five percent larger than the male, with a bill 12-15 percent longer.
The most common call is a strident weeka weeka weeka.
A study of black-tailed godwits in the Netherlands found a mortality rate of 37.6 percent in the first year of life, 32 percent in the second year, and 36.9 percent thereafter.
There is an estimated global population of between 634,000 and 805,000 birds and estimated range of 7,180,000 square kilometres (2,770,000 sq mi). In 2006 BirdLife International classified this species as Near Threatened due to a decline in numbers of around 25 percent in the previous 15 years. It is also among the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
They mainly eat invertebrates, but also aquatic plants, beetles, flies, grasshoppers, dragonflies, mayflies, caterpillars, annelid worms and molluscs. Occasionally, fish eggs, frogspawn and tadpoles are eaten. In water, the most common feeding method is to probe vigorously, up to 36 times per minute, and often with the head completely submerged.
On land, black-tailed godwits probe into soft ground and also pick prey items from the surface.
In Europe, black-tailed godwits are only hunted in France, with the annual total killed estimated at 6,000 to 8,000 birds. This puts additional pressure on the western European population, and the European Commission has a management plan in place for the species in its member states. (Source: Wikipedia)

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