Godwits and curlews
Archibald Thorburn (1860 – 1935) was a renowned British watercolorist and illustrator, celebrated for his highly detailed, naturalistic paintings of British wildlife, particularly game birds and birds of prey.
He is widely considered one of the foremost bird artists of his time, with his work capturing the plumage, texture, and natural behavior of birds with great technical precision.
Godwits and curlews are large, migratory wading birds (waders) in the family Scolopacidae, often seen on coasts, estuaries, and wetlands. They are best distinguished by bill shape: curlews have long, down-curved bills, while godwits have straight or slightly upturned bills. Both use these tools to probe for invertebrates.