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Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

-Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

-Birds (Class Aves)

-Shorebirds and Allies (Order Charadriiformes)

-Stilts and Avocets (Family Recurvirostridae)

-Typical Stilts (Genus Himantopus)

-Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)


Adult males have black backs, white bellies, black bills and long red or pinkish legs. Adult females look the same as males, but have brownish backs. Both males and females have long, pointed black wings and a slender bill that curves slightly upward. Worms, mollusks, shrimp, insects, small fish, and sometimes floating seeds make up the black-necked stilt's diet. Black-necked stilts prefer marshes, mudflats, flooded fields, ponds and drainage ditches where food is abundant.

Black-necked Stilt

Himantopus mexicanus

Diet

  • Primarily aquatic insects and their larvae, small crustaceans, molluscs, worms, spiders, and other aquatic invertebrates.

  • Also feeds on small fish, tadpoles, and seeds on occasion.

  • Forages by wading through shallow water, probing and picking prey from the water's surface or muddy substrate with its long, slender bill.

Range

  • Found from the western and southern United States through Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and much of South America.

  • Widespread throughout Mexico, including the Zihuatanejo region, where it is a common year-round resident.

  • Inhabits shallow freshwater and brackish wetlands, marshes, lagoons, estuaries, mudflats, salt ponds, flooded fields, and coastal wetlands.

  • Often nests on exposed mudflats, sandbars, or sparsely vegetated islands.

Male / Female

  • Male: Glossy black back and upperparts with a white face and underparts; long pink legs and a long black bill. During the breeding season, the back has a distinctly glossy black appearance.

  • Female: Similar overall pattern but with a brownish-black back and wings, giving her a slightly duller appearance than the male.

  • The sexes are readily distinguished in breeding plumage by the colour of the upperparts.

Size

  • Length: 35–39 cm (14–15.5 in)

  • Wingspan: 67–83 cm (26–33 in)

  • Weight: 150–220 g

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