Godwit << GOD wiht >> is any of four kinds of long-legged wading birds with long bills that often curve slightly upward. Godwits use their bills to capture insects, crabs, and other small animals for food. The birds usually measure 14 to 19 inches (36 to 48 centimeters) long. Their grayish or brownish feathers have spots and streaks.
Two kinds of godwits nest in coastal regions of the Arctic. Hudsonian godwits nest in pockets of land from Alaska to Hudson Bay in northeast Canada. Bar-tailed godwits breed from western Alaska across northern Russia and into Scandinavia. Both of the other kinds nest in marshy inland areas farther south. Marbled godwits breed mostly in the northern Great Plains of North America, and black-tailed godwits nest in many regions of Europe and Asia. All four kinds fly south to warmer climates in the winter.
