Following the secret life of Latham’s snipe at Silver Plains

Every spring, Latham’s snipe arrive in eastern Australia after an extraordinary migration from their breeding grounds in Japan and eastern Russia. Travelling thousands of kilometres along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, these birds settle into wetlands across eastern Australia for the summer months.

A large population occurs in Tasmania, including a nationally significant concentration at the Tasmanian Land Conservancy’s Silver Plains Reserve in the Central Highlands. Here, a mosaic of peatlands, marshes and wet grasslands provides summer refuge for this vulnerable migratory shorebird. In 2024, 110 Latham’s snipe were recorded at Silver Plains Reserve – the second-highest count ever in the state – highlighting the reserve’s importance.

Unlike many shorebirds that forage visibly on mudflats during the day, snipe feed mostly at night. During the day, they roost, tucked deep within wetland vegetation or besides fallen logs and hummocks. Their cryptic plumage blends seamlessly with their surroundings. Often, you don’t know you are only a few meters from them until they explode from the grass at your feet.

Finding a bird that doesn’t want to be found

With support from The Ian Potter Foundation, Tasmanian Land Conservancy’s (TLC) Bird Conservation Fund, Federation University, Australian Land Conservation Alliance and additional funding from TLC donors, we have begun research to try and understand how Latham’s snipe choose their daytime roost sites, particularly at Silver Plains Reserve. While we know they prefer dense vegetation, very little research has examined exactly what makes a roost site suitable.

• Is it simply thick cover?
• Is it proximity to feeding areas?
• Is it the structure of vegetation at the bird’s eye level?

To answer these questions, fieldwork consists of carefully walking through wetlands and observing snipe as they flush from their roost sites. When a bird flushes, we mark the exact location where it had been roosting. That spot, often distinguishable by scat or feathers, becomes the centre of detailed habitat measurements.

Seeing the wetland from a snipe’s perspective

At each roost site, photos are taken from north, east, south and west, with the camera positioned at the approximate height of a Latham’s snipe (~20cm). This gives a ‘bird’s-eye’ view of how concealed the site would appear from different directions.

Vegetation density and structure is also measured:

• How thick is the cover?
• How tall is the surrounding vegetation?
• Are there logs, hummocks or tussocks nearby?

By comparing used roost sites to nearby available but unused areas, we can begin to understand what features snipe are selecting.

The photos below show three different types of roost sites chosen by Latham’s snipe at Silver Plains Reserve. A is an example of a hummocky marsh where the snipe nestled down near a hummock. B is a more open marsh where the snipe chose some fallen logs to roost behind. C is a very densely vegetated marsh where the snipe chose roosts under shrubs.

Why roost sites matter

Wetlands are often valued for their open water and visible birdlife, but for cryptic species like the Latham’s snipe, the dense ‘messy’ parts of wetlands are critical.

Although we may not be sure we are always winning the game of hide-and-seek with these birds, when we are lucky enough to kneel at a roost site and look at the vegetation at ground level, we begin to see the wetland differently.

Sedges, rushes, fallen timber and uneven ground create structural complexity. By understanding the fine-scale features that snipe rely on, we can better inform wetland management and restoration, ensuring that important refuge area is maintained and not inadvertently simplified.

Saundra LeClair, Federation University Master’s student and recipient of the 2026 Bird Conservation Scholarship.

Banner photo by Peter Vaughan.

We thank the organisations below for their support, along with the many other funders and supporters who contribute to this work.