Jack snipe

Scientific name: Lymnocryptes minimus

How weight is recorded: Whole weight

Field notes

Appearance

Smaller than common snipe with a shorter bill, dark-capped crown, and distinctive pale lateral stripe. The plumage is cryptically mottled brown and buff above with whitish underparts; males show more vibrant iridescent sheen on head and neck.

Size and weight

Weight: 30–45 g; body length: 17–19 cm. Males average slightly smaller than females.

Habitat

Jack snipe favour boggy, marshy ground with low vegetation, wet meadows, and shallow freshwater pools. They prefer open or sparsely vegetated wetlands at lowland elevations, typically below 500 m.

Distribution

Breeds across northern Eurasia from Scotland and Scandinavia to northeastern Siberia. Winters in temperate wetlands from western Europe southward to North Africa and central Asia; rare vagrant to Americas.

Diet

Probes soft mud and shallow water for invertebrates—primarily chironomid larvae, other aquatic insect larvae, and small oligochaete worms; occasionally takes seeds.

Behaviour

Crepuscular and nocturnal feeder, most active at dawn and dusk; solitary or in loose pairs outside breeding season. Highly secretive; freezes when flushed and relies on camouflage before exploding into fast, erratic flight.

Hunting tips

Look for fresh probing marks and splayed droppings in soft mud margins and boggy areas. Approach slowly and systematically quarter wet meadows into wind, watching for sudden explosive flush. Use early morning and dusk light; move quietly to within 10–15 m before flushing, as birds are reluctant to rise.

Whole weight

This species is logged by whole weight — the animal weighed entire, as taken.

Where it is hunted

Listed as huntable in 4 countries in Huntify.

Names in other languages

These field notes are general species knowledge, not legal advice. Always check the current seasons, quotas and firearm rules where you hunt.