| The American Avocet is a large mostly white wading bird. The boldly patterned black and white wings make this bird stand out even at a distance. The distinctive bill is long, thin, and upturned with the curve being more pronounced in the female. The head and neck take on a rich rusty tinge in the summer reverting back to white in the winter. Immature birds like the one to the left have a rusty tinge on the head and back of the neck. The feet are partially webbed which help to support the bird in the soft mud and make this bird an excellent swimmer while it is hunting. The legs are long and blue and the bird is nicknamed "blue-shanks" in some parts. The voice is a loud "wheep-wheep-wheep"
The breeding habitat consists of the swampy freshwater marshes and shallow marshy lakes of the Western part of the United States. This bird breeds from Texas north into Minnesota and southern interior of Canada. It also breeds from central Washington south through most of California. In the winter the bird migrates to the coast lines on southern California into Mexico and also to the brackish waters of the Gulf Coast, Florida and along the Atlantic Seaboard up to South Carolina. They had once bred along the Atlantic Coast in marshes of New Jersey, but were hunted into near extinction and no longer breed in the eastern part of the country.
During courtship the male will wade, bow, and dance with wings spread before the female while she extends her head, neck, and wings.
They usually nest in small colonies on the muddy beaches of lakes and ponds. The nest is simply a shallow depression in the mud lined with grass into which 4 olive and buff eggs, spotted and blotched with brown and black. If threatened with flooding the Avocet will add sticks and other material to the nest to raise it to sufficient height to make it safe. The eggs are incubated for 22 to 28 days by both parents although the female does most of the incubating during the last two weeks. The colonies are very aggressive toward intruders. "Crippled bird" displays and "begging for mercy" displays are also used to distract the predators. If these fail loud calls and group mobbing of the predator including dive-bombing is used to drive the intruder away. Like many shorebirds the young are precocial and able to run about and collect food soon after they are hatched. They are also able to swim soon after hatching an able to fly about 1 month later.
The Avocet feeds like the Roseate Spoonbill, swishing their bills from side to side on the surface of the water or in the shallow mud trapping insects, snails, fish, aquatic plants and floating seeds.
Length: 16-20 inches.
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