Help with bird id

[Juliet1200]

Thanks all. I will assume snipe and hope I see one when I have binoculars with me to confirm.

Juliet

[rossy]

yes id be going snipe also, does the bird have a long beak ? rossy.

[Juliet1200]

Originally Posted by rossy

yes id be going snipe also, does the bird have a long beak ? rossy.

I haven't seen a long beak, but it's never been a very good view and they've been flying away from me!

[aeshna5]

I'm not sure what you've seen as the description leaves the field open, but the fact you've seen the bird several times, I'm sure you'd have noticed the long bill by now as I'd have expected at least a couple of them would have turned sufficiently so that the obvious bill was seen.

My hunch is that you're not seeing Snipe especially if they are flying up from a dry area- you say the marshy parts are further away.

[Juliet1200]

Originally Posted by aeshna5

I'm not sure what you've seen as the description leaves the field open, but the fact you've seen the bird several times, I'm sure you'd have noticed the long bill by now as I'd have expected at least a couple of them would have turned sufficiently so that the obvious bill was seen.

Every time I've seen one it's been at a distance and only once when I wasn't driving so I'm not actually sure I would have noticed. I've looked at quite a lot of images and the bill is very obvious, but I couldn't look for long enough to pick out anything apart from the very narrow wings and the flight pattern. I know it's not a very good description, as I haven't seen it well enough to describe any more but I thought it was worth a shot on here as it was such a distinctive flight.

Originally Posted by aeshna5

My hunch is that you're not seeing Snipe especially if they are flying up from a dry area- you say the marshy parts are further away.

I haven't actually seen it fly up from the fields, just across them, and I have no idea whether those fields do have wet ditches or not.

Do you have any other suggestions at all that could narrow it down a bit for me?

Thanks

[aeshna5]

I'm afraid it's difficult from such a basic description ( not a criticism as you are only describing from a brief view) + obviously I can't exclude snipe (the others may be correct), though my gut instinct makes me think it is something else.

Hopefully you'll get a better view to try + narrow down the choice.