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;[[:Category:Recurvirostra|Recurvirostra]] americana | ;[[:Category:Recurvirostra|Recurvirostra]] americana | ||
| − | [[Image:American_Avocet.jpg|thumb| | + | [[Image:AmericanAvocet_mrcolin2u_SanElijoLagoon.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Photo by mrcolin2u<br>[[San Elijo Lagoon]], San Diego County, [[California]], USA]] |
| + | [[Image:American_Avocet.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Photo by Ron Conley.<br/>Photo taken: [[Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve]], Huntington Beach, [[California]], USA.]] | ||
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==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
Length 16-20" (41-51 cm) | Length 16-20" (41-51 cm) | ||
Revision as of 07:08, 26 May 2008
- Recurvirostra americana
Identification
Length 16-20" (41-51 cm)
- Large, long-legged
- Slender, upturned bill
- Upperparts and wings patterned in black and white
- Underparts white
- Head and neck rust-colored in summer, white in winter
Distribution
Breeds from interior Washington, Saskatchewan, and Minnesota south to California and Texas. Winters on West Coast north to California, on Gulf Coast, and in Florida. Rare but regular visitor on Atlantic Coast in fall.
Taxonomy
Habitat
Freshwater marshes and shallow marshy lakes; breeds locally in salt or brackish marshes. Many move to the coasts in winter.
Behavior
Nesting
4 olive-buff eggs, spotted with brown and black, in a shallow depression sparsely lined with grass on a beach or mudflat. Often nests in loose colonies.
Voice
A loud repeated wheep
