Black-Necked Stilt
Himantopus mexicanus
Also known as: Ae'o, Hawaiian Stilt, American Stilt, Long-Legged Avocet, Mexican Stilt
About This Species
Look for this striking black-and-white wader's long, bright pink legs as it wades through shallow wetlands, mudflats, and salt ponds, picking small invertebrates from the water's surface with a thin, needle-like bill. It is a noisy, conspicuous bird, especially near a nest, where it gives sharp, repeated alarm calls and will fly at intruders in an agitated display. Spring and summer, during the breeding season across wetlands in the Americas, are the best times to see this behaviour, with birds often nesting in loose colonies on bare ground near water.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Give nesting colonies a wide berth, since this species nests in the open on bare ground or low vegetation and eggs and chicks are easily lost to exposure, predators, or trampling if adults are flushed repeatedly.
- Wetland and shorebird protections exist across much of this species' range in the Americas, but specific rules differ between countries, so follow posted guidance at wetland sites rather than assuming one standard applies everywhere.
- Loud alarm calling and diving flight toward you are clear signs you are too close to a nest or chicks and should retreat immediately.
Seasonal Activity
1,808,177 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Recurvirostridae
Photo
(c) Daniel Alexander Carrillo Mtz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
CC-BY-NC-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.