Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)

Sighting Ref :

IB97204

Sighting Date :

06 Apr 17

Common Name :

Black-tailed Godwit

Scientific Name :

Limosa limosa

Location :

Clonakilty

County :

Cork

Number Seen :

Principal Observer(s) :

Richard Mills Not Specified

Reported By :

Not Specified

Comments :

While it might be difficult to prove the subspecific identity of your Black-tailed Godwit beyond all doubt, to my eyes it looks perfect for an adult male Continental Black-tailed Godwit, L. l limosa. I have been looking at Icelandic Black-tailed Godwits for many years, with a particular eye out for anything that might prove to be limosa, but I have never seen as good a candidate as this. I have, however, seen quite a few Continental birds abroad, mostly in Finland and Greece, that are less distinctive than this and could be easily overlooked among flocks of Icelandic birds. I don't have the time right now to produce a detailed analysis of why I think the Clonakilty bird is likely to be limosa, but with males I think the plumage is more useful than structure, since they are not as long-billed and long-legged as females and therefore do not "stand out" on structure, especially compared to many female islandica. Well done both of you in having managed to obtain such good documentation of this interesting bird. Let's hope it generates a bit of interest and that we will, in time, get a clearer picture of the true status of this (seriously declining, within its breeding range) subspecies in Ireland, which will involve gaining a better understanding of the identification issues associated with claims of out-of-range Black-tailed Godwits. It might well lead to the detection of another Hudsonian Godwit too! Cheers, Killian

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