Large, long-legged shorebird with long, nearly straight bill. Alternate Adult is sandy-brown overall, heavily barred with black on underparts, wings, tail, and back. Neck has fine vertical streaks. Head has blackish eyeline and crown. Basic Adult is clean buffy underneath with diffuse head markings. Bill is long and narrow, pink with a black tip, straight or curving very slightly upward. In flight, note orange patches in wings. Compare Whimbrel, Long-billed Curlew, and other godwits.

Length: 46 (cm) Wingspan: 76 (cm)

Voice:

God-WIT calls, nasal notes in series.

Habitat:

In winter and migration: mudflats, beaches, estuaries, wet fields, coastlines. In breeding season: moist, grassy marshes.

Behavior:

Walks on ground with slow, deliberate steps; alone, in pairs, or small groups. In winter and migration, often found in flocks with other shorebirds, including curlews. On northern breeding grounds, nest is a shallow scrape on the ground.

Feeding:

Probes in mud with long bill or picks prey off ground surface; eats worms, crustaceans, mollusks, grasshoppers, insects, and some seeds.