View source for Austral snipe

{{Short description|Genus of birds}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Austral snipes
| image = Campbell snipe.jpg
| image_caption = [[Campbell snipe]]
| taxon = Coenocorypha
| authority = [[George Robert Gray|G.R. Gray]], 1855
| type_species = ''[[Subantarctic snipe|Gallinago aucklandica]]''<ref name=HM4>{{cite web |url= https://www.aviansystematics.org/4th-edition-checklist?viewfamilies=63 |title= Alcidae |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website= aviansystematics.org |publisher= The Trust for Avian Systematics |access-date= 2023-07-26}}</ref>
| type_species_authority = G.R. Gray, 1845
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = see text
}}

The '''austral snipes''', also known as the '''New Zealand snipes''' or '''tutukiwi''',<ref name=TeAra>{{cite web|title=Story: Wading birds – New Zealand snipe|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/wading-birds/page-6|publisher=Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand|access-date=11 November 2014}}</ref> are a [[genus]], '''''Coenocorypha''''', of tiny [[bird]]s in the [[sandpiper]] [[family (biology)|family]], which are now only found on [[New Zealand outlying islands|New Zealand's outlying islands]]. There are currently three living [[species]] and  six known [[extinct]] species, with the [[Subantarctic snipe]] having three [[subspecies]], including the [[Campbell Island snipe]] discovered as recently as 1997. The genus was once distributed from [[Fiji]], [[New Caledonia]] and [[Norfolk Island]], across [[New Zealand]] and southwards into New Zealand's [[subantarctic]] islands, but predation by [[introduced species]], especially [[rat]]s, has drastically reduced their range.

==Taxonomy and range==
The relationship between ''Coenocorypha'' snipe and the [[snipe]]s of the genus ''[[Gallinago]]'' is uncertain. ''Coenocorypha'' is sometimes thought to be a relict taxon of an ancient lineage;<ref name = "Tennyson">Tennyson, A., & Martinson, P. (2006). ''Extinct Birds of New Zealand''. Te Papa Press, Wellington {{ISBN|978-0-909010-21-8}}.</ref> however, insufficient research has been done to prove this.  The first specimen  was collected from the [[Auckland Islands]] during the voyage of [[HMS Erebus (1826)|HMS ''Erebus'']] and [[HMS Terror (1813)|HMS ''Terror'']] and was described by [[George Robert Gray|George Gray]] in 1845. Ten years later he assigned the species to its own genus. With the exception of the [[Chatham snipe]] and the [[Forbes's snipe]] (described from [[fossil]]s found in the [[Chatham Islands]]) all subsequent New Zealand snipe collected were assigned as subspecies to the original species, known as the New Zealand snipe. Subspecific forms have been described from the [[The Snares|Snares]], [[Little Barrier Island]], [[Stewart Island]], the [[Antipodes Islands]] and Campbell Island.

A morphological study and comparisons of [[plumage]] and behaviour led some authors to accept that the [[Snares Islands]], [[Little Barrier Island]] and [[Stewart Island]] forms were all species instead of subspecies of the [[Auckland Island]] snipe, also raising the possibility that the [[Antipodes Island]] snipe might be a separate species.<ref>Worthy, T. H., Miskelly, C. M. & Ching, B. A. (2002). Taxonomy of North and South Island snipe (Aves : Scolopacidae : ''Coenocorypha''), with analysis of a remarkable collection of snipe bones from Greymouth, New Zealand ''New Zealand Journal of Zoology'' 29 (3): 231–244</ref>

In 1997, a previously unknown form of snipe was discovered on [[Jacquemart Island]] off [[Campbell Island, New Zealand|Campbell Island]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1 = Barker, D. | author2 = Carroll, J. | author3 = Edmonds, H. | author4 = Fraser, J. | author5 = Miskelly, C. | name-list-style=amp | year = 2005 | title = Discovery of a previously unknown ''Coenocorypha'' snipe in the Campbell Island group, New Zealand subantarctic | journal = Notornis | volume = 52 | issue = 3 | pages = 143–149 | access-date =  29 October 2016 |url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266908433 }}</ref> The [[Campbell snipe]] was described as another subspecies in the radiation of New Zealand snipes.<ref name="Campbell">{{cite journal|last1=Miskelly|first1=C.|last2=Backer|first2=A. J.|title=Description of a new subspecies of Coenocorypha snipe from subantarctic Campbell Island, New Zealand|journal=Notornis|date=2010|volume=56|issue=3|pages=113–123|url=http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_56_3_113.pdf}}</ref> Fossil remains of ''Coenocorypha'' have also now been discovered on the islands of [[New Caledonia]], [[Fiji]] and [[Norfolk Island]].<ref>Worthy, T. H., & Holdaway, R. N. (2002). ''The Lost World of the Moa'', Indiana University Press:Bloomington, {{ISBN|0-253-34034-9}}.</ref><ref>Worthy T. H. (2003). A new extinct species of snipe ''Coenocorypha'' from Viti Levu, Fiji. ''Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club'' 123: 90–103.</ref> Fossil evidence has also shown that the Little Barrier Island form was once widespread across [[North Island]] and the Stewart Island form across [[South Island]]; both are now extinct.

===Species and subspecies===
[[File:Snares snipe, tutukiwi Coenocorypha huegeli.jpg|alt=An adult Snares snipe on Codfish Island / Whenua Hou.|thumb|A banded adult [[Snares snipe]], from the first translocation from the [[Snares Islands / Tini Heke|Snares Islands]] to [[Codfish Island|Codfish Island / Whenua Hou]].|350x350px]]
*[[Chatham snipe]] ''C. pusilla'' <small>(Buller, 1869)</small> – Chatham Islands
*[[Subantarctic snipe]] ''C. aucklandica'' <small>(G.R.Gray, 1845)</small>
**[[Auckland snipe]] ''C. a. aucklandica'' <small>(G.R.Gray, 1845)</small> – Auckland Islands
**[[Antipodes snipe]] ''C. a. meinertzhagenae'' <small>Rothschild, 1927</small> – Antipodes Islands
**[[Campbell snipe]] ''C. a. perseverance'' <small>Miskelly & Baker, 2010</small> – Campbell Island
*[[Snares snipe]] ''C. huegeli'' <small>(Tristram, 1893)</small> – Snares Islands
*† [[North Island snipe]] ''C. barrierensis'' <small>Oliver, 1955</small>, also known as the Little Barrier Snipe
*† [[South Island snipe]] ''C. iredalei'' <small>Rothschild, 1921</small>, also known as the Stewart Island Snipe
*† [[Forbes's snipe]] ''C. chathamica'' <small>(Forbes, 1893)</small> – Chatham Islands
*† [[Viti Levu snipe]] ''C. miratropica'' <small>Worthy, 2003</small> – Fiji
*† [[New Caledonian snipe]] ''Coenocorypha neocaledonica'' <small>Worthy et al., 2013</small> – New Caledonia
*† [[Norfolk snipe]] ''Coenocorypha'' sp. – Norfolk Island

==Description==
The austral snipes have long bills and short necks, wings, and tails. Overall they resemble ''[[Gallinago]]'' snipes, although smaller, stockier, and with relatively shorter [[beak|bill]]s.<ref name = "Hanzab">Higgins, P. J. & Davies, J. N., eds. (1996). ''Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds.  Volume 3: Snipe to Pigeons. '' Oxford University Press, Melbourne. {{ISBN|0-19-553070-5}}.</ref>  They measure from 19–24&nbsp;cm long, with wingspans of 28–35&nbsp;cm, and weigh 75–120&nbsp;g. The smallest species is the Chatham Island snipe. Their [[plumage]] is overall brown; most species have a dark eye stripe. The scapulars on the wings are mottled, with some species having white tips.

==Behaviour==
===Diet===
The austral snipes are carnivorous, feeding on [[invertebrate]]s found by probing in the soil and in compacted vegetation.<ref name = "Hanzab"/> Feeding is both [[Diurnality|diurnal]] and [[nocturnal]], with most hunting occurring at night and in the early morning. Bouts of feeding are characterised by continuous probing the soil with the full length of the bill. The ground is covered systematically, with about 18 holes for every 100&nbsp;cm<sup>2</sup> of soil. Prey is presumably detected by touch and possibly by [[Corpuscles of Herbst|Herbst's corpuscles]],<ref name = "Hanzab"/> clusters of cells that can detect changes in pressure and have been shown to be used by other shorebirds to detect prey.<ref>Piersma, T., van Aelst, R., Kurk, K., Berkhoudt, H., & Maas, L. R. M. (1998). A new pressure sensory mechanism for prey detection in birds: the use of principles of seabed dynamics? ''Proceedings of the Royal Society B''. 265 (1404): 1377–1383.</ref> Smaller prey is swallowed with the bill still probed, as the mandibles are flexible and the prey can be manipulated in the soil. Larger prey items are removed from the soil for easier manipulating and swallowing. The most common prey items taken include [[earthworm]]s, [[amphipod]]s, [[beetle]] adults and larvae and the [[pupae]] of other insects.

===Breeding===
The breeding biology of some of the austral snipes has been studied in some detail. They are mostly [[Monogamy in animals|monogamous]] (although occasionally some males attempt [[Animal sexual behaviour#Polygamy|polygamy]]) and defend [[Territory (animal)|territories]] from other breeding pairs, although non-breeders are tolerated inside territories. Pair formation occurs some months before breeding, and males feed females as part of the courting rituals.<ref name = "Miskelly1989">Miskelly, C (1989) Breeding systems of the New Zealand Snipe ''Coenocorypha aucklandica'' and the Chatham Island Snipe ''Coenocorypha pusilla''; are they food limited? ''Ibis'' 132: 366–379.</ref>  Before breeding the male snipe also perform nocturnal aerial "hakawai" displays with [[Bird song|calls]] followed by a non-vocal roar created by diving birds driving fast moving air across the rectrices of the tail. This display is thought to be the origin of the [[Māori people|Māori]] legends about the [[Hakawai (mythology)|Hakawai]], a term which has been extended to refer to the aerial displays.<ref name="Hakawai">{{cite journal|last1=Miskelly|first1=C|title=The identity of the Hakawai|journal=Notornis|date=1987|volume=34|issue=2|pages=95–116|url=http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_34_2.pdf|access-date=2017-07-19|archive-date=2012-01-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118213655/http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_34_2.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Both sexes choose the nesting site, although only the female builds the nest. The usual clutch size is two [[Bird egg|eggs]], laid three days apart. Incubation duties are shared between the sexes, incubation taking 22 days. Where a male has two females in its territory it will incubate at just one nest, the female at the other has to incubate alone, taking 38 days to hatch chicks.

After hatching the pair splits, with each member of the pair taking one chick and raising it. Chicks are fed for around 41 days, and stay with the parent for another 20 days after that. The chick of the [[Chatham Island snipe]] matures faster than the other species, is only fed for thirty days and becomes independent at 41 days. Parental care in the [[extinct]] [[South Island snipe]] is also thought to have been different, with studies conducted in 1923 and 1930 showing that both parents cared for a single chick.<ref>Miskelly, C., & de Lange, P. (2006). Notes on the breeding ecology of the extinct Stewart Island snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica iredalei''). ''Notornis'' 53 (4): 339–352.</ref> Nothing is known about the parental care of the [[North Island snipe]], the [[Forbes's snipe]] or the snipes of [[Fiji]], [[New Caledonia]] or [[Norfolk Island]].

==Threats and conservation==
[[File:North Island snipe (Coenocorypha barrierensis) Auckland Museum.jpg|thumb|The extinct North Island snipe]]
The austral snipes [[evolved]] on oceanic islands without land [[mammal]]s and were [[island tameness|ecologically naive]] with regard to mammalian predators.  When humans arrived on the islands they lived on they brought with them [[Polynesian rat]]s and later larger more aggressive predators such as [[black rat]]s, [[stoat]]s and [[feral cat]]s.  With the arrival of these predators austral snipes quickly became [[extinct]], with the species in Fiji, New Caledonia and Norfolk Island becoming extinct in prehistory. Around New Zealand snipes survived on rarely visited offshore islands and on the sub-Antarctic islands.  The North Island snipe survived until the arrival of European settlers, and the last South Island snipe survived off [[Stewart Island / Rakiura]] until 1964, when rats reached [[Taukihepa / Big South Cape Island]]. The island had also been the last refuge of the [[bush wren]] and the [[New Zealand greater short-tailed bat]]. Attempts were made to capture some snipe (and wrens) for translocation to a safe island, but only two snipe were caught and both died two days later.<ref name = "Tennyson"/>

Today the remaining species are a conservation priority. Techniques to translocate snipe without killing them have been developed, and a small group of [[Snares Island snipe]] have been established off Stewart Island.<ref>Charteris, M. & Miskelly, C. (2005). ''Snares Island snipe (tutukiwi) translocation to Putauhinu Island, April 2005'' Department of Conservation, Wellington {{ISBN|0-478-22687-X}} [http://www.doc.govt.nz/upload/documents/conservation/native-animals/birds/snares-snipe-putauhinu.pdf PDF]</ref> Campbell Island snipe have benefited from the [[island restoration|removal]] of rats from Campbell Island in 2001; they have  recolonised the main island from Jacquemart Island and begun breeding there again.<ref>Miskelly, C., & Fraser, J. (2006). Campbell snipe (''C. a. perseverance'') recolonise subantarctic Campbell Island following Rat eradication. ''Notornis'' 53 (4): 353–359.</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* Austral snipe discussed on RNZ ''Critter of the Week'', [http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/201819996/critter-of-the-week 14 October 2016]
{{Wikispecies|Coenocorypha}}

{{Scolopacidae|2}}
{{Charadriiformes|S.|state=collapsed}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q868199}}

[[Category:Sandpipers]]
[[Category:Coenocorypha| ]]
[[Category:Taxa named by George Robert Gray]]