American Avocet
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| Recurvirostra americana (Gmelin, 1789) |
The American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae.
The Avocet has long, thin, gray legs, giving it its colloquial name, "blue shanks". The plumage is black and white on the back with white on the underbelly. The neck and head are cinnamon colored in the summer and gray in the winter. The long, thin bill is upturned at the end. Their adult size is about 18 inches (45 cm) tall.
Their breeding habitat is marshes, beaches, prairie ponds, and shallow lakes in the mid-west and on the Pacific coast of North America. They nest on open ground, often in small groups, sometimes with other waders. A pair will rear one brood per season, with both male and female providing parental care for the young.
They are migratory and most winter on the southern Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Mexico and the United States.
These birds forage in shallow water or on mud flats, often sweeping their bills from side to side in water. They mainly eat crustaceans and insects.
[edit] Protected status
The American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) is protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.[1]
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Recurvirostra americana. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 09 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- Fact sheet, taxonomic details, distribution maps, slideshow, and images of Recurvirostra americana at ZipcodeZoo.com.
- O'Brien, Michael, et al. (2006). The Shorebird Guide. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-618-43294-9
