Bar-tailed Godwit

Overview

The Bar-tailed Godwit breeds on high Arctic tundra across northern Eurasia and Alaska and is famous for completing some of the longest nonstop migratory flights recorded in any bird, with some individuals flying directly across the Pacific Ocean between Alaska and New Zealand or Australia. Its finely barred tail distinguishes it clearly from the bold black tail of the Black-tailed Godwit.

Feathers are typically found at major coastal staging sites during migration and on open mudflats and estuaries on the wintering grounds.

Feather Identification

• Tail feathers: finely barred black-and-white pattern throughout, quite different from the solid black terminal band of Black-tailed Godwit.
• Wing feathers: lacks the bold white wingbar of Black-tailed Godwit, showing a much plainer, less contrasting wing pattern in flight.
• Breeding underparts: rich brick-red to chestnut wash across the neck, breast, and belly, particularly vivid in males.
• Nonbreeding feathers: streaked gray-brown above and pale below, plainer than breeding plumage but retaining the finely barred tail pattern.
• Versus Black-tailed Godwit: the finely barred tail (rather than a bold black band) and absence of a strong white wingbar are the clearest distinctions from Black-tailed Godwit.

Plumage Notes

Breeding males show a particularly vivid brick-red to chestnut wash covering the underparts almost entirely, while breeding females are typically larger and somewhat less brightly colored. Nonbreeding adults become streaked grayish-brown above and pale gray-white below, losing the rich breeding color.

Juveniles show a buffy wash with neatly scaled upperpart feathers, distinct from the vivid breeding adult. Several subspecies breeding across Eurasia and Alaska show variation in the depth of breeding coloration. Molt into nonbreeding plumage generally occurs after long migratory flights are completed on the wintering grounds.

Habitat & Range

Bar-tailed Godwits breed on high Arctic tundra across northern Scandinavia, Russia, and Alaska. They undertake extraordinary migratory journeys, including some of the longest recorded nonstop flights of any bird, and winter on coastal mudflats and estuaries across western Europe, Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and Australasia.

Behavior & Field Notes

Bar-tailed Godwits forage by probing in soft mud and shallow water for invertebrates, often building substantial fat reserves before undertaking their extreme long-distance migratory flights. They gather in large flocks at key staging areas to refuel before and after these journeys.

Nests are shallow tundra scrapes. The flight call is a sharp, distinctive note given during display and migration. Because of their reliance on specific critical staging sites along major flyways, feathers are often concentrated at these locations during migration periods.