Marbled Godwit

( Limosa fedoa )

The Marbled Godwit, a member of the Sandpiper family, has dark brown plumage with black markings throughout and a light brown belly. It is one of the larger shorebirds, being approximately 18 inches in length. Its distinguishing long bill, which has a slight up-turn, is light near the face and black at the tip. The tip of the Marbled Godwit's bill is extremely sensitive so it can forage for worms, mollusks, and crustaceans in the shallows of the lagoons and beaches. One might notice that many of the shorebirds have different length bills. This allows them to harvest the lagoon at various depths without depleting the resources.

While the Marbled Godwit winters along the western coasts of the United States and Mexico, it travels to the lower central regions of Canada and the upper central states of the United States in the summer months. It is in these regions that it builds its nests. This shorebird is considered a semi-colonial nester. In its shallow depression of a nest, it will lay up to 4 greenish-brown eggs with dark markings. The eggs hatch in about 3 weeks.