AVOCETS AND STILTS 



(226) Himantopus mexicanus 



(Mulkr) (Gr., strap leg). 



BLACK-NECKED STILT. Less 

 extremely long and slender; bright 

 red. Only three toes. Bill slender 

 and black. Ads. — Plumage as 

 shown, pure white below and glossy 

 black above. The back of the 9 

 usually inclined toward brownish. 

 Im. — Upper parts brownish black, 

 the feathers more or less edged with 

 buffy. L., 15.00; \V., 9.00; T., 

 3.00; Tar., 4.25; Bare Tib., 3.25; 

 B., 2.25. Nest — A depression in 

 the ground, usually near the water's 

 edge ; three or four pyriform, 

 greenish-buff eggs, blotched with 

 black, 1.80 X 1.25. 



Range — Breeds from central Fla., 

 coast of La., Tex., Col. and central 

 Ore. southward. Casual in migra- 

 tions north to N. B. and Wis. 



The toes are full-webbed and the birds are excellent swim- 

 mers; in fact they often alight in deep water. 



They are not at all shy except when hunted, and often 

 allow a quite near approach as small bands of them are 

 feeding in the shallow water on mud flats. They feed upon 

 insects, their larvae and small Crustacea, which they get, not 

 by probing but by swinging the bill regularly sidewise through 

 the soft mud. They very frequently wade in water up to 

 their bodies and feed in this manner, with the head immersed. 



Their nests are usually located in grass in rather moist 

 places, the hollow being lined with grasses or, occasionally, 

 with small twigs. The note of Avocets is a loud, not unmusi- 

 cal "klee-eek," having a sharp clinking quality. 



BLACK-NECKED STILTS have bright red legs of 

 exceedingly great length and slenderness, and long, narrow 

 wings that, when folded, reach beyond the end of the tail. 

 They are by no means as good swimmers as Avocets and 

 rarely do so unless they get beyond their depth while wading. 

 Their toes are only partially webbed, which, together with 



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