THE BLACK-NECKED STILT 



{Himaj^topus mexicanus.) 



The range of the Black-necked Stilt, 

 an interesting bird whose habits and gen- 

 eral appearance have caused much dis- 

 cussion, is quite extensive. While it is 

 far from common in the eastern United 

 States, its range may be given as cover- 

 ing the whole of temperate North Amer- 

 ica from the northern United States 

 southward to the West Indies, Brazil, 

 and Peru. It is fairly abundant in the 

 western portion of its range. It bears a 

 few other common names, such as Law- 

 yer, Long-shanks, and Pink-stockings. 



Of all the grotesque forms among our 

 wading birds, the Black-necked Stilts, I 

 think, are the most prominent. Their 

 legs are longer in proportion to the size 

 of their bodies than are those of any 

 other birds, excepting the flamingoes. In 

 the southern states, especially Louisiana 

 and Texas, and also in southern Califor- 

 nia, it is probably the best known of all 

 the waders, because of the fact that al- 

 most every pond has a pair of these birds 

 which are always on the alert and quickly 

 give the alarm of the approach of an in- 

 truder. The shrill cry alarms the other 

 birds in the vicinity, and the lives of 

 many egrets and ibises have thus been 

 saved by the warning notes of these 

 watchful birds. This is, however, not 

 always their habit. Dr. Elliott Coues re- 

 lates the following as his experience with 

 the Stilts at Los Pinos, New Mexico. 

 He says, speaking of a flock : "They of- 

 fered a very striking and pleasing effect, 

 wheeling in easy flight, the flock appear- 

 ing one moment black, the next white, 

 as they showed alternately the upper and 

 under parts, with the long, bright-tinted 

 legs heightening the contrast of color. 

 Although not heedless or unduly fa- 

 miliar, they were not very shy. Besides 

 being almost unacquainted with the dan- 

 ger that may lie in man's approach, they 

 appeared of a gentle, unsuspicious na- 

 ture, the more noticeable in contrast with 

 the restlessness and watchfulness of most 

 waders." Dr. Coues also writes of ap- 



proaching a lar-ge flock, by walking 

 quietly and slowly. The Stilts saw him, 

 but stood motionless and seemed to be 

 looking-at him with more curiosity than 

 fear. In an instant, however, as if they 

 had but one mind in common, a thought 

 occurred, and they very quickly flew 

 away. 



The antics^of the Stilts when suddenly 

 alarmed are very amusing, as they 

 usually run, when on the ground, a few 

 steps in order to obtain momentum for 

 flight, and in their haste will often stum- 

 ble and fall to the ground, and the efforts 

 they make, at times, to recover their bal- 

 ance is very ridiculous. On the other 

 hand, when they are quietly walking and 

 feeding, particularly when wading in 

 four or five inches of water, they are ex- 

 tremely graceful, the slender neck and 

 head being moved and carried with dig- 

 nity. 



The confidence which these birds often 

 have in man may be shown by the fact 

 that a pair spent several days on a small 

 pond within five hundred feet from the 

 house in which I was staying in Galves- 

 ton, Texas. Inside of the town limits, 

 they soon became as tame as the boat- 

 tailed grackles and buzzards, and when a 

 dog would run at them they would circle 

 above him and make quick darts at his 

 head. Sometimes they would approach 

 so close to the dog that I fully expected 

 to see one of them caught. 



It is said by some observers that the 

 Stilts sometimes nest in quite large 

 groups; At times, their nests are merely 

 slight depressions in the ground, which 

 are lined with dry grass. It is also said 

 that the nests are at times built with 

 small twigs and roots, in grass at the 

 margin of bodies of water. The number 

 of eggs in a set varies from three to four 

 in number. They are of a greenish-yel- 

 low color and spotted, blotched and lined 

 with varying shades of brownish-black. 

 The nests are always located near bodies 

 of water. 



Frank Morley Woodruff. 



235 



