the most common feeding method is to probe vigorously, up to 36 times per minute, and often with the head completely submerged. On land, black-tailed godwits probe into soft ground and also pick prey items from the surface. Relationship to humans In Europe, black-tailed godwits are only hunted in France, with the annual total killed estimated at 6,000 to 8,000 birds. This puts additional pressure on the western European population, and the European Commission has a management plan in place for the species in its member states. In England, black-tailed godwits were formerly much prized for the table. Sir Thomas Browne (1605–1682) said: "[Godwits] were accounted the daintiest dish in England and I think, for the bignesse, of the biggest price." Old names included Blackwit, Whelp, Yarwhelp, Shrieker, Barker and Jadreka Snipe. The Icelandic name for the species is Jaðrakan. Status There is an estimated global population of between 634,000 and 805,000 birds and estimated range of . In 2006 BirdLife International classified this species as Near Threatened due to a decline in numbers of around 25% in the previous 15 years. It is also among the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. References Further reading Identification Separation of limosa and islandica Vinicombe, Keith (2005) A tale of two godwits Birdwatch 154:18-20 External links Black-tailed godwit species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds Ageing and sexing (PDF; 0.94 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze black-tailed godwit Birds of Eurasia black-tailed godwit black-tailed godwit Articles containing video clips