The snipe (as nepa) is found in some medieval encyclopedias. It is about the size of a partridge, and its back is colored like one, but its chest is colored the a sparrowhawk. It has a long beak which it uses to dig for worms in the earth; sometimes it digs too deep and cannot pull its beak out, so it uses its feet to dig itself free.

The name commonly used for this bird, nepa, is probably a corruption of the Old German name snepa, snipe.