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Avocet

Recurvirostra

Last updated: January 20, 2021
Verified by: AZ Animals Staff

The avocet's long, sinewy legs make it appear as if it's walking on stilts!

Continue Reading after the facts...


Avocet Scientific Classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Aves
Order
Charadriiformes
Family
Recurvirostridae
Genus
Recurvirostra
Scientific Name
Recurvirostra

Avocet Conservation Status

  • Least Concern

Avocet Locations

  • Asia
  • Eurasia
  • Europe
  • North-America
  • Oceania
  • South-America
Avocet Locations

Avocet Facts

Main Prey
Insects. Fish, Crustaceans
Fun Fact
The avocet's long, sinewy legs make it appear as if it's walking on stilts!
Distinctive Feature
Long curved beak and striking plumage
Wingspan
29-31.5 inches
Incubation Period
3-4 weeks
Habitat
Temperate wetlands
Predators
Dogs, Cats, Stouts
Diet
Carnivore
Lifestyle
  • Flock
Favorite Food
Insects
Type
Bird
Slogan
Has a curved, upturned beak!
Nesting Location
Shores
Age of Molting
About a month
Migratory
1

Avocet Physical Characteristics

Colour
  • Black
  • White
Skin Type
Feathers
Top Speed
25 mph
Lifespan
10 - 15 years
Weight
140g - 400g (5oz - 14oz)
Length
42cm - 45cm (16in - 18in)

Avocet Images

Click through all of our Avocet images in the gallery.

View all of the Avocet images!

The avocet is a genus of wading birds that reside close to freshwater and saltwater bodies all over the world. Their long, sinewy legs make them appear as if they’re walking on stilts! The name avocet is thought to come from a local Italian name avosetta. They are most closely related to other birds that live and feed near bodies of water.

An Amazing Bird: 3 Avocet Facts

  • If given the choice, the avocet seems to prefer salty habitats over freshwater ones, but both types of habitats are suitable for its needs.
  • A drawing of the pied avocet graces the emblem of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, a charitable organization in England and Wales. This species was actually extinct in Britain by the early 20th century, but the reclamation of marshland in the 1940s brought it back.
  • The avocet is sometimes confused for the closely related to stilt. The main difference is that stilts have longer legs with red or orange colors, while avocets have more subdued colors like gray or black on their shorter but still very long legs.

Where to Find Avocet Birds

The avocet has a wide distribution near beaches, flats, lakes, and ponds around the world. The genus contains four species, each with its own geographical distribution. The American avocet is endemic to Mexico, the Western United States, and parts of the Atlantic Coast. The Andean avocet is endemic to much of Pacific South America. The pied avocet has an extensive range in coastal Europe, Africa, and Central and parts of South Asia. Finally, the red-necked avocet is native to Australia.

Avocet Bird Nests

The avocet prefers to nest in loosely organized colonies near the shore of large bodies of water. Built within small depressions, the nest is composed of little more than basic soil, pebbles, and other debris. If the water level rises, then the birds can build up the nest into a foot-tall mound.

Avocet Scientific Name

The scientific name of the avocet is Recurvirostra. Although this word appears difficult to pronounce at first glance, it’s actually a combination of two simpler Latin words: recurvus, meaning curved backwards, and rostrum, meaning bill. The avocet is closely related to the long-legged stilts in the family of Recurvirostridae.

A Beautiful Bird: Avocet Appearance

Measuring up to 20 inches from head to tail (with a wingspan of around 30 inches from one tip to another), the avocet is a long, sinewy bird with a suite of distinctive features. The long, bluish or grayish legs are adapted for wading into the water. The webbed feet enable them to become proficient swimmers. And the long bill is a very well-adapted instrument for feeding. The feathers are some combination of black, white, red, and brown.

Curved Beak

Perhaps the most distinctive feature (apart from the long legs) is the long, slender bill with an upturned tip at the end. In order to feed, the avocet will wade into the shallow waters, lean forward, and place the slightly open tip of bill on the bottom. By sweeping the head from side to side, the avocet can stir up tiny prey hiding in the soil and then filter out food bits with the bill. Females and males are generally similar in appearance, but in some species, the bill is the giveaway. The female has a shorter and more upturned bill compared with the longer and straighter bill of the male.

Avocet profile

Avocet Behavior

Outside of their normal breeding season, avocets occupy large, raucous colonies of hundreds. Although not exactly a cooperative animal, they will band together to aggressively defend the colony from predators and threats (though they will sometimes allow stilts to congregate with them). These intelligent birds have all kinds of strategies to deal with predators. Sometimes they will make loud, irritating sounds to provide a distraction. Or they will pretend to be hurt to draw the predator away. They may also dive bomb the predator to scare it off.

In order to communicate with each other, the avocets make loud and repetitive sounds, rising in intensity over time. Each of these calls conveys certain information to each other about the identity of the individual or the presence of an invader. To attract a mate, the male avocets will combine their calls with complex displays of crouching, dancing, and bowing.

The avocet is a crepuscular bird, meaning that it’s most active during the dawn and dusk hours. With their webbed feet, avocets are excellent swimmers. In addition to its standard feeding behavior with its bill, avocets will sometimes “tip up” like ducks in deeper waters. This is when the lower half is submerged in water as it reaches down to feed. They are also very proficient flyers that travel very long distances.

Migration Pattern and Timing

The avocet demonstrates distinctive migrating patterns throughout the year. The American avocet, for instance, prefers to breed in a large stretch of territory between New Mexico and southern Canada. In the winter season, it travels south to Mexico or east toward Florida and the Atlantic Coast. The pied avocet, by contrast, breeds in Europe and Central Asia. Some populations travel as far south as Africa to winter, though other populations remain far closer to their breeding grounds.

Avocet Prey and Predators

This bird plays an important regulatory role in the ecosystem by keeping prey populations in check. In the foraging hours, entire groups will line the shore looking for food in a rather fascinating display.

What does the avocet eat?

They consume all types of small crustaceans, insects, and fish larvae. The diet is sometimes supplemented with seeds.

What eats the avocet?

Some of the more common predators include foxes, skunks, and weasels, but avocets prefer to nest where access for most other animals is difficult.

Avocet Reproduction, Young, and Molting

Based on studies of the American avocet, it’s known that this species, at least, likes to form a strong monogamous bond with its mate. It will demonstrate interest in a mate by exhibiting a series of elaborate courtship rituals like crouching and bowing. This is the only species of the four to grow breeding plumage, almost pink or red in color, when it’s time to mate.

The American avocet produces an average of four eggs per clutch. Both parents will take turns to incubate the eggs for some three to four weeks. Born with downy feathers, the young chicks are ready to begin an independent life soon after emerging from the egg, because they already have the ability to hunt and swim on their own. They will develop feathers quickly enough to make their first flight at around four to five weeks of age.

This bird can live up to 15 years in the wild, but the American avocet has a life expectancy of about nine years on average. Since it takes about a year to reach sexual maturity, the avocet has relatively fewer breeding seasons to successfully raise offspring.

Avocet Bird Population

The IUCN Red List has determined that all four species merit the classification of least concern, which means they are in no danger of extinction. The bird was once widely hunted in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but according to population estimates from Partners in Flight, there may be up to 450,000 mature American avocets in the wild, thanks in part to the protection of the US Migratory Bird Act. Reports indicate it is becoming more common again in the Eastern United States as well.

The biggest threat to this bird today is the loss of habitat. It is estimated that some 60 acres of wetlands were lost every hour in the first 200-year history of the United States. Scientists have finally begun to recognize and appreciate the importance that wetlands play in the ecosystem, and numerous reclamation projects are underway to restore environments to their original condition. Besides environmental degradation, another threat to the avocet is that their nests are sometimes destroyed from flooding, pollution, and trampling.

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Avocet FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) 

Are Avocets herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores?

Avocets are Carnivores, meaning they eat other animals.

What Kingdom do Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the Kingdom Animalia.

What class do Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the class Aves.

What phylum to Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the phylum Chordata.

What is an avocet?

The avocet is a genus of long-legged birds with distinctive curved beaks. Although not an actual marine bird, it does live close to the water for feeding.

Where are avocets found?

Avocets are found in marshes, lakes, and coasts all over the world.

How many eggs does the avocet lay?

The avocet lays an average of four eggs per clutch.

How fast does the avocet fly?

It is estimated that the bird can fly more than 20 mph.

What is the avocet’s wingspan?

The avocet has a wingspan of around 30 inches on average.

When do avocets leave the nest?

The avocet is independent almost from the moment it’s born.

Are avocets endangered?

None of the avocet species are endangered.

Why do avocets have curved beaks?

The curved beaks help them dig around in the soil of shallow water for food.

What do avocets eat?

The majority of avocet’s diet consists of crustaceans and insects, but they do eat small fish and undeveloped larvae as well.

What family do Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the family Recurvirostridae.

What order do Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the order Charadriiformes.

What genus do Avocets belong to?

Avocets belong to the genus Recurvirostra.

What type of covering do Avocets have?

Avocets are covered in Feathers.

In what type of habitat do Avocets live?

Avocets live in temperate wetlands.

What are some predators of Avocets?

Predators of Avocets include dogs, cats, and stouts.

What are some distinguishing features of Avocets?

Avocets have long curved beaks and striking plumage.

What is an interesting fact about Avocets?

Avocets have a curved, upturned beak!

What is the scientific name for the Avocet?

The scientific name for the Avocet is Recurvirostra.

How to say Avocet in ...
German
Säbelschnäbler
English
Avocet
Spanish
Recurvirostridae
French
Avocette
Finnish
Avosetit (suku)
Turkish
Kılıçgaga
Sources
  1. Brittanica, Available here: https://www.britannica.com/animal/avocet
  2. Animal Diversity Web, Available here: https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Recurvirostra_americana/
  3. Audubon, Available here: https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/american-avocet

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