Black-tailed godwit
Limosa limosa (Linnaeus, 1758)
The black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa), also called Blackwit or European black-tailed godwit, is a bird in the family Scolopacidae and the order Charadriiformes. It is a small, migratory bird of wetland habitat that weighs from 264 to 330 g, with a representative mass of 288.4 g and a wingspan of 76 cm.
Quick facts about the black-tailed godwit
It is a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator, and it lays 3.95 eggs per clutch (up to 4), with one clutch per year and an incubation period of 23.5 days. The IUCN Red List assesses it as Near Threatened, which is not a threatened category, and checklists record it in Australia.
- Weight
- 264 g – 330 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 76 cmsrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 23.5 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 23.6 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- wetlandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 23.5 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 3.95src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 24 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Near Threatened (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- 1 countrysrc for Countries on record
How big is the black-tailed godwit?
Photos of the black-tailed godwit
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the black-tailed godwit live?
Countries where Catalogue of Life checklists list the species. Many checklists carry no country data, so the list is often incomplete. It is not a range map.
The black-tailed godwit is listed for 1 country.
- Listed
- Not listed
The same countries as a list
Why a country list is not a range map
Listed by: ITIS (scope: global), through the Catalogue of Life.
What is the black-tailed godwit?
The black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa) is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the godwit genus, Limosa. There are four subspecies, all with orange head, neck and chest in breeding plumage and dull grey-brown winter coloration, and distinctive black and white wingbar at all times.
Its breeding range stretches from Iceland through Europe and areas of central Asia. Black-tailed godwits spend (the northern hemisphere) winter in areas as diverse as the Indian subcontinent, Australia, New Zealand, western Europe and west Africa. The species breeds in fens, lake edges, damp meadows, moorlands and bogs and uses estuaries, swamps and floods in (the northern hemisphere) winter; it is more likely to be found inland and on freshwater than the similar bar-tailed godwit. The world population is estimated to be 634,000 to 805,000 birds and is classified as Near Threatened.
From the Wikipedia article “Black-tailed godwit” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Black-tailed_godwit&oldid=1371058663), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the black-tailed godwit sound like?
Is the black-tailed godwit endangered?
The black-tailed godwit is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List: it is close to qualifying as threatened.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Near Threatened species. What the categories mean.
How is the black-tailed godwit classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCharadriiformes
- familyScolopacidae
- genusLimosa
- SpeciesLimosa limosa (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms Limosa belgica, Limosa melanura, Scolopax lacustris
Other names and names in other languages (120)
- BlackwitEnglish
- BTGOEnglish
- European black-tailed godwitEnglish
- SwartstertgrietAfrikaans
- بقويقة سلطانيةArabic
- بقويقة سوداء الذيلArabic
- بقويقة سلطانية سوداء الذيلArabic
- بقويقة سوداء الذيل لأوربيةArabic
- aguya rauprietaAsturian
- Abuya de Rau PrietuAsturian
- Böyük oxcüllütAzerbaijani
- ҠыҙғатауBashkir
- Грыцук вялікіBelarusian
- Вераценнік вялікіBelarusian
- Вялiкi грыцукBelarusian
- Обикновен кукуносBulgarian
- Черноопашат крайбрежен бекасBulgarian
- কালালেজ জৌরালিBangla
- Marc'heg lost duBreton
- Tètol cuanegraCatalan
- tètol cuanegreCatalan
- Пысӑк вӑрӑмсӑмсаChuvash
- břehouš černoocasýCzech
- RhostogWelsh
- Cwtyn DuWelsh
- rhostog gynffondduWelsh
- Rhostogod CynffondduWelsh
- stor kobbersneppeDanish
- UferschnepfeGerman
- އެށުންގަ އިލޮޅިDivehi
- ΛιμόζαGreek
- Ευρωπαϊκή ΛιμόζαGreek
- (Ευρωπαϊκή) ΛιμόζαGreek
- nigravosta limozoEsperanto
- Aguja colinegraSpanish
- mustsaba-vigleEstonian
- Kuliska buztanbeltzBasque
- گیلانشاه بالسفیدPersian
- گیلانشاه دم سیاهPersian
- mustapyrstökuiriFinnish
- ReyðspógviFaroese
- Barge à queue noireFrench
- RütjerNorthern Frisian
- SkriesWestern Frisian
- Guilbneach earrdubhIrish
- Cearra ghobScottish Gaelic
- cearra-ghobScottish Gaelic
- Cèarra-ghobScottish Gaelic
- cearra-ghobanScottish Gaelic
- guilbneach earrdhubhScottish Gaelic
- Mazarico rabinegroGalician
- Gob-kiare doo-fammanaghManx
- לימוזה מצויהHebrew
- Crnorepa MuljacaCroatian
- crnorepa muljačaCroatian
- nagy godaHungarian
- Մեծ իլիկակտցարArmenian
- Biru-laut ekor-hitamIndonesian
- JaðrakanIcelandic
- pittima realeItalian
- オグロシギJapanese
- დიდი ლიაGeorgian
- Үлкен шырғалақKazakh
- 흑꼬리도요Korean
- Godwyt tyndhuCornish
- WiseschneppLuxembourgish
- griciukasLithuanian
- paprastasis griciukasLithuanian
- melnā puskuitalaLatvian
- LavasomotramaintiramboMalagasy
- црноопашна блатаркаMacedonian
- പട്ടവാലൻ സ്നാപ്പ്Malayalam
- Girwiel PrimMaltese
- Морин цууцал - ᠬᠠᠷᠠ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ ᠮᠣᠷᠢᠨ ᠵᠠᠷᠠᠭMongolian
- काळ्या शेपटीचा पाणटिवळाMarathi
- Burung Kedidi Ekor HitamMalay
- Tábąąsdísí jáádnézí bitseeʼ łizhinígííNavajo
- मलगुझाNepali
- gruttoDutch
- svarthalespoveNorwegian Nynorsk
- BoufeumèiPicard
- rycykPolish
- szlamnik rycykPolish
- کالی پچھ آلا گاڈوٹWestern Panjabi
- milherangoPortuguese
- maçarico-de-bico-direitoPortuguese
- Becassina da rivaRomansh
- Sitar de malRomanian
- sitarul de malRomanian
- Болотный куликRussian
- Нетигель чернохвостыйRussian
- Сукалень чернохвостыйRussian
- большой веретенникRussian
- СукаленьRusyn
- КураҕаччыYakut
- CáhppesbaðošguškilNorthern Sami
- čáhppesbađošguškilNorthern Sami
- ČáhppesbaðošguškilNorthern Sami
- brehár čiernochvostýSlovak
- črnorepi kljunačSlovenian
- gjelaci bishtziAlbanian
- gjelëza e madhe bishtzezëAlbanian
- MuljačaSerbian
- МуљачаSerbian
- Muljaca - МулјачаSerbian
- rödspovSwedish
- Msese Mkia-mweusiSwahili
- கருவால் மூக்கன்Tamil
- கருவால் மூக்கான்Tamil
- นกปากแอ่นหางดำThai
- camur culluguTurkish
- çamur çulluğuTurkish
- Улуг ээргиишTuvinian
- Великий грицикUkrainian
- Грицик великийUkrainian
- Choắt mỏ nhácVietnamese
- 黑尾塍鹬Chinese
- 黑尾塍鷸Chinese
- 黑尾鷸Chinese
- 黑尾鷸〔黑尾塍鷸〕Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the black-tailed godwit
Other species in the same genus Limosa.
Bar-tailed godwit
Limosa lapponica
Hudsonian godwit
Limosa haemastica
Marbled godwit
Limosa fedoa
CompareBlack-tailed godwit vs Bar-tailed godwitBlack-tailed godwit vs Hudsonian godwitBlack-tailed godwit vs Marbled godwit
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the black-tailed godwit?
The black-tailed godwit is a small migratory bird in the family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
How much does a black-tailed godwit weigh?
An adult Black-tailed godwit weighs from 264 to 330 g, with a representative value of 288.4 g. Its wingspan is 76 cm.
What does the black-tailed godwit eat?
The black-tailed godwit is a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator.
Is the black-tailed godwit endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List lists it as Near Threatened (NT), which is not a threatened category.
How long does a black-tailed godwit live?
The black-tailed godwit has a lifespan of 23.5 years, with values up to 23.58 years reported.
How many eggs does a black-tailed godwit lay?
The black-tailed godwit lays 3.95 eggs per clutch, up to 4, with one clutch per year. Incubation lasts 23.5 days.
Which countries is the black-tailed godwit recorded in?
Checklists record the black-tailed godwit in Australia.
Who named the black-tailed godwit?
The scientific name Limosa limosa is attributed to (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-tailed-godwit
“Black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-tailed-godwit.
@misc{black_tailed_godwit_2026,
title = {Black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-tailed-godwit},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}