Bar-tailed Godwit

Scientific Name: Limosa lapponica

Description: One of the northern hemisphere migrants, Bar-tailed Godwits are most commonly seen on local wetlands between the months of September and March. During winter, small numbers of first-year birds remain when the breeding adults are in far north Eurasia at their nesting areas. Most of the birds we see are in eclipse, or non-breeding, plumage just before they begin their northern migration, a few attain their rich orange-red colouring of the breeding season. Godwits feed on invertebrates including sandworms and crustaceans that they probe for with their long, narrow, slightly up-curved beak.

The Bar-tailed Godwit has the record for long-distance non-stop flight. In 2022 a bird was recorded flying 13,560 km from Alaska to Tasmania over a period of 11 days.

Type: Bird
Where to find: Beaches
Size: 16cm