- Himantopus mexicanus
Includes: White-backed Stilt
Identification
35–40 cm (13¾-15¾ in)
- White underparts
- Black wings and back
- White tail with some grey banding
- Black cap
- Small white spot above eye
- Long pink legs
- Long thin black bill
- melanurus has less black and more white on head
Males - greenish gloss to back and wings, particularly in breeding season
Females - tinged brown.
Distribution
U.S. to southern Peru and Brazil; Hawaiian Islands.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 3 subspecies:
- H. m. mexicanus:
- Western and southern US to eastern Ecuador, south-western Peru and north-eastern Brazil; winters in the West Indies
- H. m. knudseni:
- H. m. melanurus:
Habitat
Wetlands and coastlines, up to 2500m.
Behaviour
Diet
Their varied diet consists mostly of small aquatic invertebrates, crustaceans, arthropods, molluscs, small fish and tadpoles. They also eat seeds from aquatic plants.
Breeding
Chicks, subspecies mexicanus
Photo © by Stanley Jones
Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Chambers County, Texas, USA, July 2018
Photo © by Stanley Jones
Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Chambers County, Texas, USA, July 2018
They nest on mudflats. The clutch consists of 3-5 eggs which both adults incubate for 22-26 days. The young fledge after about 28 days.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2016)
- Wikipedia
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black-necked Stilt. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-necked_Stilt
External Links
