Painted snipe are distinctive waders placed together in their own family Rostratulidae. They are short-legged, long-billed birds similar in shape to the true snipes, but much more brightly coloured.
The female is brighter than the male and takes the lead in courtship. The male incubates the eggs, usually 4, in a nest on the ground or floating for about 20 days.
Both species live in reedy swamps, and their diet consists of worms and other invertebrates they find with their long bills.
The Australian paintedsnipe is an extremely rare bird, and of which little is known.
The snipe is unusual in the bird world because the female is better looking than the male - and she uses her looks quite effectively, mating with several males and leaving each one to incubate and raise the chicks.
Biologists believe the snipe's sharp decline was caused by water being diverted away from rivers and wetlands to farming irrigation.
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