Clojure Programming

Colophon

The animal on the cover of Clojure Programming is a painted snipe. The painted snipes (family Rostratulidae) comprise three species: the Greater Painted Snipe, the Australian Painted Snipe, and the South American Painted Snipe.

These shorebirds are distinct from the true snipes, and, as their name implies, also much more colorful. They may be more closely related to jacanas or sandpipers. Painted snipe live in marshes, swamps, and other wetlands, and they eat a varied diet of seeds, rice, millet, insects, snails, and crustaceans. They are solitary and “skulking,” except during breeding season, so they are difficult to spot.

The Greater Painted Snipe (Rostratula benghalensis) lives in Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. The Australian Painted Snipe (R. australis), long considered a subspecies, is found only in Australia and is classified as endangered. These two species of painted snipe exhibit an unusual sexual dimorphism, with the females larger and more brightly colored than the males. They are polyandrous, with the female courting several males, and the males take responsibility for incubating the eggs and raising the chicks.

The South American Painted Snipe (Nycticryptes semicollaris) is found in the southern parts of that continent. It can be distinguished from the other painted snipes by its webbed toes. The South American Painted Snipe mates monogamously and doesn’t display the same degree of sexual dimorphism as the Greater and Australian species. It is hunted for food ...