THE BIRDS OF SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE
THE BIRDS OF SOUTH
GLOUCESTERSHIRE
LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER – Limnodromus scolopaceus
As with all reports of
rare and scarce birds they are subject to ratification by the respective
rarities committees
There are records of Long-billed Dowitcher from all over Europe; they were split from the Short-billed Dowitcher as recently as 1950's. Needless to say it can be difficult to separate the two species, however juveniles are easily separated on the basis of tertial feather patterns, a good reason to become familiar with this set of shorebird feathers. Usually Long-billed Dowitcher has more dark banding in the tail which gives the white area up the centre of the back more contrast with the tail, but best is the single 'keek' call for positive identification. Despite their names, bill length is of little help for field identification. The name Dowitcher may originate from the American Red Indian Mohawk word 'tawístawis' meaning snipe.
There has been one Long-billed Dowitcher reported from S. Gloucestershire in;
1977: (1)
On October 16th an individual was reported at Aust Warth, though subsequently recorded as a Dowitcher spp. probably Long-billed, it was referred to at the time as a possible Short-billed Dowitcher. This occurrence constitutes the first record of this species for S. Gloucestershire.