Strange bird, possibly a hybrid, in Victoria, Australia, in 1948

_{Wednesday 11th January 2023}

STRANGE BIRD, POSSIBLY A HYBRID, IN VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA, IN 1948

I came across a story in the Border Morning Mail(New South Wales) of March 2nd 1948,which ran as follows:” This strange looking bird was shot yesterday morning by Mr G.W.Seymour,Union Bridge,Wodonga. His curiosity being aroused for the past week,he decided to shoot it for identification purposes,but although he has lived in the district all his life,he says he has never seen a similar bird. The beak is like that of a snipe,and on the head is a top-notch,while the body,both in size and appearance,resembles a teal. The feet…although webbed,the toes are not joined and each one has an almost human looking toe nail.”

I found out that Latham`s Snipe does spend its non-breeding season in E.Australia and the Grey Teal is found in wet lands of S.Australia.