Australia
SpeciesField NotesLog inDownload

Field notes

Stay in the loop

Get updates, new features, and Australian birding news.

By subscribing, I agree to receive BirdUp Australia updates, new features, and Australian birding news.

Australia
Download for iOSDownload for AndroidSpeciesField NotesRSSNewsletterBrandPrivacyTerms

BirdUp Australia Pty Ltd © 2026. Made in Australia for Australian birders.

  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Scolopacidae
  4. ›
  5. Gallinago
  6. ›
  7. Pin-tailed Snipe
Pin-tailed Snipe
Photo · By JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) - Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23214324

BirdUp · Species

Pin-tailed Snipe

Gallinago stenura(Bonaparte, 1831)

Updated 11 April 2026

Conservation status: LCOrigin: Native
Order
CHARADRIIFORMES
Family
Scolopacidae
Genus
Gallinago

At a glance

The Pin-tailed Snipe is a medium-sized bird, about 25–27 cm long, listed as LC and native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
25–27 cm
Conservation status
LC
Origin
Native
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Common
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Pin-tailed Snipe look like?

The Pin-tailed Snipe is a medium-sized bird, about 25–27 cm long and weighing 90–170 g.

The pin-tailed snipe or pintail snipe is a species of bird in the family Scolopacidae, the sandpipers.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
25–27 cm
Weight
90–170 g
Wingspan
44 cm

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

Field tips

behaviour

  • When flushed, this species typically maintains a low and relatively straight flight path, lacking the extreme, sharp zigzagging movements characteristic of the Common Snipe.

flight

  • In flight, the wings appear relatively blunt and completely lack a white trailing edge along the rear margin.

plumage

  • The underwing is densely and uniformly barred, giving the entire underside of the wing a distinctly dark, greyish appearance in flight.

size_and_shape

  • At rest, the folded wingtips usually reach or extend slightly past the end of the tail, creating a notably short-tailed profile.

voice

  • Listen for a weak, high-pitched 'squik' or 'pep' call given immediately upon taking flight, which is quieter and thinner than the calls of other large snipes.

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Pin-tailed Snipe?

The Pin-tailed Snipe is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Pin-tailed Snipe eat?

The Pin-tailed Snipe feeds on terrestrial invertebrates and fish/invertebrates, usually foraging alone.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

2 photos

The BirdUp app

Log your next Pin-tailed Snipe in the field

A pocket field journal for 850+ Australian birds. Offline-first, smart ID, and a lifelist that travels with you.

Get the appRead field notes
Spotted something wrong on this page? Report incorrect info

02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Pin-tailed Snipe live in Australia?

The Pin-tailed Snipe is native to Australia, recorded across 5 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingLow Arctic tundra to temperate montane meadows of north-central and north-east Palearctic: north-west Siberia and north-east Kazakhstan and north Mongolia to central Chukotskiy Pen. to Sea of Okhotsk (east Siberia)

Non-breedingOR, AU : inland wetlands of subtropical to tropical Oriental region: south and south-east Arabian Pen., south and south-east Asia, Greater Sundas, south-east China, Taiwan, Korean Pen., Ryukyu Is. (south Japan); north Australia and Christmas Island

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Vagrant
  • Breeding

3 regions recorded