# Common snipe (*Gallinago gallinago*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-snipe  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The common snipe (Gallinago gallinago) is a small bird of the family Scolopacidae in the order Charadriiformes. It is a migratory, terrestrial bird of wetland habitats and a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator. Adults weigh 112.9 g, with reported values from 100.5 to 128 g, and have a wingspan of 52 cm. It lays one clutch of 4 eggs per year, incubated for 19 days, and is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 100.5 g – 128 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 52 cm |
| Lifespan | 12.3 years – 18.2 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Egg incubation | 19 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 4 |
| Age at maturity | 12 months – 15 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Charadriiformes
- family: Scolopacidae
- genus: Gallinago
- species: *Gallinago gallinago* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Capella gallinago*, *Gallinago burka*, *Gallinago caspia*, *Gallinago coelestris*, *Gallinago latipennis*, *Gallinago nilotica*, *Gallinago sakhalina*, *Gallinago scolopacina*, *Gallinago scolopacinus*, *Gallinago uniclavata*, *Gallino gallino*, *Scolopax brehmii*, *Scolopax delamottei*, *Scolopax gallinaria*, *Scolopax gallinaria*, *Scolopax media*, *Scolopax peregrina*, *Scolopax picta*, *Scolopax pygmaea*, *Scolopax sabinii var. obscura*, *Scolopax saturata*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the common snipe?

The common snipe is a small bird in the family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes. It is migratory and lives in wetland habitats.

### How heavy is the common snipe?

An adult common snipe weighs 112.9 g, with reported values from 100.5 to 128 g. Its wingspan is 52 cm.

### What does the common snipe eat?

The common snipe is a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator.

### Is the common snipe endangered?

No. The common snipe is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the common snipe live?

The common snipe has a lifespan of 12.33 years, and our sources report up to 18.2 years.

### How many eggs does the common snipe lay?

The common snipe lays 4 eggs per clutch and has 1 clutch per year. The eggs are incubated for 19 days.

### When does the common snipe reach sexual maturity?

The common snipe reaches sexual maturity at 1.1 years, with reported values from 1.0 to 1.2 years.

### Who named the common snipe?

The common snipe, Gallinago gallinago, was named by (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), 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](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), 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](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), 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](https://commons.wikimedia.org), 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](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), 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).

Cite as: Common snipe (Gallinago gallinago). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-snipe