The Australian painted-snipe is a medium-sized, long-billed, distinctively patterned wader.
Region
Australia
Typical Environment
Occurs patchily across Australia wherever shallow, vegetated freshwater wetlands form, including floodplains, claypans, lignum swamps, and rice fields. It favors ephemeral wetlands with muddy margins and low emergent cover such as sedges and grasses. After inland rains it may quickly colonize newly formed wetlands, then disperse widely as they shrink. It is less common on saline wetlands and avoids deep open water. Nests are placed on the ground near water, often under cover.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1000 m
Climate Zone
Subtropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The Australian painted-snipe is a medium-sized, long-billed, distinctively patterned wader, now recognized as a species distinct from the Greater Painted-snipe. Females are more brightly colored than males and often initiate courtship, while males incubate and rear the chicks. It is highly nomadic, appearing at ephemeral wetlands after heavy rains and disappearing when they dry.
Temperament
secretive and crepuscular
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats, low fluttering flights
Social Behavior
Often seen singly, in pairs, or small loose groups at suitable wetlands. The species is polyandrous; females may mate with multiple males, and males incubate the eggs and care for the chicks. Nests are shallow scrapes on the ground among low vegetation near water.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Generally quiet, giving soft whistles and piping calls, especially at dawn and dusk. During courtship, females may produce mellow, cooing whistles. Alarm calls are sharper, clipped notes when flushed.
Plumage
Mottled olive-brown upperparts with bold white spotting and a conspicuous white shoulder/wing patch; clean white underparts with dark barred flanks. Females show richer chestnut tones on the neck and more contrasting head pattern, while males are duller and browner. Both sexes have a long pinkish bill with a darker tip and rounded wings.
Diet
Feeds mainly on aquatic and shoreline invertebrates, including insects, worms, mollusks, and small crustaceans. It probes soft mud with its long bill and also picks prey from the surface and shallow water. Occasional seeds or plant matter may be taken incidentally.
Preferred Environment
Forages along muddy margins of shallow freshwater or brackish wetlands with patchy cover, such as sedges, rushes, and grasses. Frequently uses recently flooded areas, claypans, rice fields, and lignum swamps, where it can remain partly concealed while feeding.
