Last week I was walking through a wet field when suddenly a bird flew up from the grass. It gave its alarm call, “Scaip!” as it flew away. It flew back and forth, and then it dropped back into the long grass. It had a streaked, brown back, an orange tail, long pointed wings and a bill at least three inches long. It was a Wilson’s snipe.

I don’t usually see snipes in late November. The ground was mostly frozen that morning. In the wet grass, it could still probe with that bill for worms, insects and mollusks. That bird better head south to more moderate climate – New Jersey, Virginia, the Carolinas – where the ground doesn’t freeze and the snow isn’t deep.

The snipe probably takes its long bill for granted, but I find it fascinating. The tip is flexible and can sense the presence of a worm, an insect larva or a mollusk in the mud. Then it can open just the end half-inch of its bill and grab its prey, pulling it out of the mud.

In March or April, it is thrilling to hear the first snipe of spring. The male snipe arrives first and does his courtship flight, making the “winnowing” noise. It is a wonderful noise, heard over wet fields or marshes, from April through mid-June. A child can make the same noise, and so can you. Purse your lips, and say wu-wu-wu-wu-wu-wu by clapping all your four fingers at once, as quickly you can against your lips.

Or, if you want to keep your dignity, you can go to www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/Wilson’sSnipedtl.html and hear its winnowing, as well as see its photo.

The male snipe does his winnowing not with his voice, but with his tail feathers. He flies in circles high over his territory in the marsh. Then he dives, fanning out his tail feathers. His speed makes the side feathers wobble, causing the winnowing sound.

It’s something to anticipate throughout the long winter. Meanwhile, I’m glad I had an opportunity to bid goodbye and good luck to that late snipe.

For information on Fields Pond Audubon Center, call 989-2591.