Bigoli is an extruded pasta in the form of a long and thick tube. Traditionally they were made with buckwheat flour, but are more commonly made with whole wheat flour

Whole wheat flour

Whole wheat flour is a powdery substance derived by grinding or mashing the wheat's whole grain. It is used in baking but typically added to other "white" flours to provide nutrients , texture, and body to the finished product....

 now. Traditionally, duck eggs are used for the pasta. It closely resembles bucatini

Bucatini

Bucatini is a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through the center. The name comes from , meaning "hole", while bucato means "pierced"....

. Bigoli is a term used in Venice, whereas the term pici

Pici

Pici is a thick, hand rolled pasta, like a fat spaghetti. It originates in the province of Siena in Tuscany; in the Montalcino area it is also referred to as pinci....

 is used in Tuscany for a similar sized pasta without the hole in the center; often, the terms will be used interchangeably.

In "La vecchia cucina eugubina" they say that this noodle

Noodle

The noodle is a type of food, made from any of a variety of doughs, formed into long thin ribbons, strips, curly-cues, waves, helices, pipes, tubes, strings, or other various shapes, sometimes folded. They are usually cooked in a mixture of boiling water and/or oil. Depending upon the type, noodles...

 is as thick as a wooden needle

Knitting needle

A knitting needle or knitting pin is a tool in hand-knitting to produce knitted fabrics. They generally have a long shaft and taper at their end, but they are not nearly as sharp as sewing needles. Their purpose is two-fold...

 for knitting stockings.