86 
AVOCETS AND STILTS 
FAMILY RECURVIROSTRIDiE: AVOCETS AND 
STILTS. 
KEY TO GENERA. 
1. Bill strongly curved upward toward end, hind toe present but minute; 
front toes half webbed .. Recurvirostra, p. 86. 
1'. Bill scarcely or not at all curved upwards, hind toe wanting, only a 
small web between outer and middle toes . Himantopus, p. 86. 
GENUS RECURVIROSTRA. 
225. Recurvirostra americana Gmel. Avocet. 
Bill black, feet and legs bluish. Adults in summer plumage: head, neck, 
chest, and shoulders light 
cinnamon, shading into 
whitish around base of 
bill; under parts, rump, 
and large patches on 
wing white; primaries, 
base of wing, and half of 
scapulars black. Adults 
in winter plumage : cinna¬ 
mon of head, neck, and chest replaced by grayish white. Young: like 
winter adults, but quills and scapulars tipped with whitish, and back of 
neck tinged with huffy. Length: 15.50-18.75, wing 8.50-9.00, bill 3.40- 
3.65, tarsus 3.70-3.80. 
Distribution. — Temperate North America, breeding from Texas to 
Saskatchewan ; south in winter to Guatemala and West Indies. Not com¬ 
mon east of the plains. 
Nest. — In grass near water, made of grass stems. Eggs: 3 or 4, pale 
olive or buffy, thickly spotted with varying shades of brown. 
Whether flying, walking, or swimming, the avocet is one of the 
most conspicuous of our waders. Its long legs and neck, and strong 
black and white markings distinguish it from all others even when 
its turned-up bill is invisible. Its favorite haunts are the shores of 
shallow alkaline lakes and ponds on the plains and in the western 
valleys. Small flocks are often seen wading in water nearly up to 
their feathers, rapidly picking up the small insects that gather on 
the surface. When the water becomes too deep for wading they 
swim freely, but do not usually go far from shore. They are seen 
occasionally feeding in a marsh or irrigated meadow, and in July 
I have found downy young hiding in the short grass just back from 
the lake shore. Vernon Bailey. 
GENUS HIMANTOPUS. 
226. Himantopus mexicanus (Miill.). Black-necked Stilt. 
Bill black, feet and legs pinkish. Adult male : back of head and neck, 
shoulders, and wings greenish black ; tail gray; rest of plumage white, 
breast tinged with dull pinkish in breeding plumage. Adult female : like 
