Image of Common snipe

Description:

"Wilson's Snipe (Gallinago delicata) 9 October 2015: In retrospect the visit we made to the Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge (HNWR) on October 9th though only a short afternoon visit proved to be quite productive in terms of rendering some new observations for us that we've shared here. This bird is one we had not photographed before and we found it at Hagerman's on our way out toward the end of our visit. We were only able to take three digital images from a distance with the scope fully extended and the light was not entirely in our favor. So we've cropped the images and increased the light or exposure with Lightroom in order to be better able to observe the features of the birds in question. The resulting images are a compromise but one we think allows us to make the ID and share it widely as well. When we tried approaching the pair of Wilson's Snipes that was feeding near the shore at one of the wetlands ponds, they flew away in a hurry to the next pond over and we let them continue with their feeding without further interruption. There will be another day to acquire clearer images of this bird, Wilson's Snipe. We hope to have made the correct IDentification. In case we haven't then by all means let us know. Wilson's Snipe ranges widely from all except the coldest and most northern reaches of Canada from coast to coast where it breeds exclusively and thence migrates south and is found in most of the United States with its presence in and around the Great Lakes being that of a migratory nature, and elsewhere as a wintering ground except for the group of northwestern states in the United States where it is a year-round resident. This permanent range includes states like Washington and Oregon (and British Columbia across the border to the north in Canada along its Pacific Coast) as well as parts of Montana, Idaho, California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and South Dakota. To the south its extensive flight range takes it throughout Mexico, Central America and the northern countries of the South American continent which constitute its southernmost range especially Colombia and Venezuela. Because Wilson's Snipe is one of the great fliers of the Americas and long been so it is beyond question that this shorebird is one of the original and authentic residents of the Western Hemisphere. Source: ""Wilson's Snipe,"" All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, excellent description and range map plus photographs and calls, accessed 10.14.15, http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wilsons_Snipe/id"