Snipe

Snipe, any bird of the genus Ga1linago of the Wading family Scolopacidae, with twenty-four species universally distributed. The bill is long, straight, slightly flexible, extremely sensitive, and serves as a delicate organ of touch by means of which these birds procure the worms and insects on which they feed, and which they obtain by thrusting the bill into the mud and soft earth of the marshy and fenny places they frequent. Three species are British. The Common Snipe (G. coelestis) spends the summer and breeds here, leaving in autumn and returning in the spring. The total length is about eleven inches. The general plumage is shades of brown and buff marked and barred with black; the belly is white. The Jack Snipe (G. gallinula), a much smaller specles, is a winter visitor. The Great, Solitary, or Woodcock Snipe (G. major) visits this country in the autumn in its southward migration. These birds afford excellent sport, and are all highly valued for the table.