Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt: Large shorebird with sharply contrasting black upperparts and white underparts. Long, thin, upcurved bill. Red eyes with white eye-rings, and white patch above. Legs are extremely long and red-pink. Feeds on insects, fish, worms, small crustaceans and seeds. Swift direct flight.
● Song:
"kek-kek-kek", "yip-yip-yip"
● Foraging & Feeding:
Black-necked Stilt: Feeds on tadpoles, mollusks, water beetles and other aquatic insects, snails, small fish, flying insects, and seeds.
● Breeding & nesting:
Black-necked Stilt: Three to five brown-spotted, yellow or buff eggs are laid in a shallow ground depression lined with grass or shell fragments, usually in a marsh; nests in loose colonies. Incubation ranges from 22 to 25 days and is carried out by both parents.
● Similar species:
Black-necked Stilt: American Avocet is larger, and has white on back, dark legs, and rust-brown or gray on head and neck.
● Range & Habitat:
Black-necked Stilt: Breeds along coasts from Oregon and Delaware southward, and locally in western interior states east to Idaho, Kansas, and Texas. Spends winters along the Pacific coast north to central California, Florida, and other Gulf coast states. Preferred habitats include salt marshes, shallow coastal bays, and freshwater marshes.