Feeding Behavior

Forages mostly by wading in shallow water and probing vertically with its bill in the mud of the bottom, often thrusting its head underwater. Sometimes picks insects from surface of water. Feeding is similar to that of dowitchers, and it often associates closely with dowitcher flocks.

Eggs

4. Pale cream to olive-green, heavily dotted with brown. Incubation is by both parents, 19-21 days. Female incubates at night, male during the day. Young: Downy young leave nest soon after hatching, find all their own food. Both parents may tend young at first, but female usually departs in less than a week, male after about 2 weeks. Young can fly at about 17-18 days.

Young

Downy young leave nest soon after hatching, find all their own food. Both parents may tend young at first, but female usually departs in less than a week, male after about 2 weeks. Young can fly at about 17-18 days.

Diet

Includes insects, mollusks, seeds. Diet not well known, but includes a wide variety of aquatic insects (including fly larvae and beetles), marine worms, snails; also the seeds, leaves, and roots of aquatic plants.

Nesting

Male displays over breeding territory by flying slowly with shallow wingbeats, calling incessantly, then gliding with wings in shallow "V" while giving guttural song. In courtship, spectacular aerial displays; male pursues female in the air, gets in front of her and then raises wings high over his back, singing as he plummets. Nest site is in a dry spot on low ridge or on top of sedge hummock, often surrounded by water or wet ground. Nest is shallow depression in vegetation, with little or no lining; male makes nest scrapes, female chooses one.