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Cool Facts |
Photo
taken from:
The
Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America by
David Allen Sibley
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- In response to predators, the American Avocet sometimes issues a
series of call notes that gradually changes pitch, simulating the
Doppler effect and thus making its approach seem faster than it actually
is.
- Nesting American Avocets aggressively attack predators, sometimes
physically striking Northern Harriers or Common Ravens.
- A female American Avocet may lay one to four eggs in the nest of
another female, who then incubates the eggs. American Avocets may
parasitize other species' nests too; single American Avocet eggs have
been found in the nests of Mew Gulls. Other species may also parasitize
avocet nests. Avocets have incubated mixed clutches of their own eggs
and those of Common Terns or Black-necked Stilts. The avocets reared the
stilt hatchlings as if they were their own.
- American Avocet chicks leave the nest within 24 hours after
hatching. Day-old avocets can walk, swim, and even dive to escape
predators.
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Description |
Adult Description
- Large shorebird. Long legs.
- Long, upturned bill.
- Black-and-white upperparts.
- Rusty or gray neck and head.
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Immature Description
Similar to adult, but head colored light buff. |
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Range Map |
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Taxonomic Hierarchy |
© 2003 Cornell Lab of Ornithology
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Kingdom: |
Animalia |
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Phylum: |
Chordata |
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Subphylum: |
Vertebrata |
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Class: |
Aves |
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Order: |
Ciconiiformes |
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Family: |
Charadriidae |
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Genus: |
Recurvirostra |
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Species: |
Recurvirostra americana |
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Sound |
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Call a repeated, high-pitched "kleek."
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Identification and
Information
See
Anatomy
of a Bird
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Body |
- Length
Range: 46-51 cm (18-20 in)
- Weight:
315 g (11.1 oz)
- Size:
Large (16 - 32 in)
- Color
Primary: White, Black, Rufous or Rust
- Underparts:
White
- Upperparts:
Black and white.
- Back
Pattern: Solid
- Belly
Pattern: Solid
- Breast
Pattern: Solid
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Head |
- Bill Shape:
Curved (up or down)
- Eye Color:
Variable shades of brown.
- Head
Pattern: Eyering, Unique pattern
- Crown Color:
Rust-brown
- Forehead
Color: Rust-brown with white at base of
bill.
- Nape Color:
Rust-brown
- Throat
Color: Rust-brown
- Cere color:
No Data
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Flight |
- Flight
Pattern: Strong direct flight.
- Wingspan
Range: 69-97 cm (27-38 in)
- Wing Shape:
Long-Wings
- Tail Shape:
Squared Tail
- Tail
Pattern: Solid
- Upper Tail:
Gray
- Under Tail:
White
- Leg Color:
Blue-gray
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Breeding |
- Breeding Location:
Seashore, rocky or sandy, Grassland with
scattered trees, Marshes, freshwater, Swamps
- Breeding Type:
Monogamous, Loose colonies
- Breeding Population:
Fairly common
- Egg Color:
Olive buff marked with brown and black
- Number of Eggs:
3 - 4
- Incubation Days:
22 - 29
- Egg Incubator:
Both sexes
- Nest Material:
Lined with dry grasses and mud chips.
- Migration: Migratory
- Condition at Hatching: Downy and
able to walk.
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Other Names |
Similar Species |
- Foulque d'Amérique (French)
- Avoceta Americana, Piqocurvo (Spanish)
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- Black-necked Stilt has all black back, black face and back of neck,
and red legs.
- Godwits less cleanly marked and with shorter legs.
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Conservation Status |
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Populations declined in the 1960s and 1970s, largely from
the loss of wetlands from water diversion for human use.
Contamination of wetland habitat with selenium caused
increased developmental abnormalities and mortality. Since
1995, owners of selenium-contaminated sites in northern
California have been required to provide safe wetland
habitat for the species. Breeding success on the newly
created sites has been much greater than initially expected,
but long-term prospects for breeding at these sites are not
clear. |
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Habitat |
Sources used to
Construct this Page: |
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Shallow fresh and saltwater wetlands. |
- Robinson, J. A., L. W. Oring, J. P. Skorupa, and R.
Boettcher. 1997. American Avocet (Recurvirostra
americana). In The Birds of North America,
No. (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North
America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA., No. 275 (A. Poole and
F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences,
Philadelphia, PA, and the American Ornithologists'
Union, Washington, D.C.
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Food |
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Aquatic invertebrates. |
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Behavior |
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In its pre-copulation display, the male American Avocet preens
himself with water, gradually gaining intensity to the point of
frenzied splashing just before he mounts the female. After
copulating, the pair intertwines their necks and runs forward.In
territory establishment and in self-defense, performs elaborate
ritualized displays. One notable display involves two pairs, or a
pair and a third individual, facing each other in a circle and then
stretching their bills toward each other. Upon the approach of a
terrestrial predator, may approach the predator with a teetering
gait and outstretched wings, as if on a tightrope. Also crouches on
the ground as if incubating, only to move and crouch again in a new
location.Feeds in shallow water, while wading or swimming. Locates
food by sight and snaps it up, or sweeps its long bill through the
water, capturing prey by touch. |
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