Bar-tailed Godwit
Limosa lapponica
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Caradriformes)
- FamilyScolopacidae (Sandpipers and Allies)
- GenusLimosa (Godwits)
- SpeciesLimosa lapponica (Bar-tailed Godwit)
The bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica) is a large and strongly migratory wader in the family Scolopacidae, which feeds on bristle-worms and shellfish on coastal mudflats and estuaries. It has distinctive red breeding plumage, long legs, and a long upturned bill. Bar-tailed godwits breed on Arctic coasts and tundra from Scandinavia to Alaska, and overwinter on coasts in temperate and tropical regions of Australia and New Zealand. The migration of the subspecies Limosa lapponica baueri across the Pacific Ocean from Alaska to New Zealand is the longest known non-stop flight of any bird, and also the longest journey without pausing to feed by any animal. The round-trip migration for this subspecies is over 29,000 km (18,020 mi). Wikipedia →
<5% of wildlife watchers report a Bar-tailed Godwit sighting in Tsavo East National Park, based on 72 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Tsavo East National Park
Black-tailed Godwit
Limosa limosa
Common Greenshank
Tringa nebularia
Little Stint
Calidris minuta
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucos
Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
Wood Sandpiper
Tringa glareola
Terek Sandpiper
Xenus cinereus
Curlew Sandpiper
Calidris ferruginea
Eurasian Curlew
Numenius arquata
Sanderling
Calidris alba
Green Sandpiper
Tringa ochropus
Marsh Sandpiper
Tringa stagnatilis
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Bar-tailed Godwit in Tsavo East National Park?
About 4% of wildlife watchers report a Bar-tailed Godwit sighting in Tsavo East National Park, based on 72 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Bar-tailed Godwit in Tsavo East National Park?
September has the highest sighting rate for Bar-tailed Godwit in Tsavo East National Park in our monthly data.