Black-necked Stilt Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  A tall but small-bodied shorebird with very long legs, a long neck, small head, and thin, straight bill.

  Relative Size

  Smaller than a Willet, larger than a Lesser Yellowlegs.

  between robin and crow

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 13.8-15.3 in (35-39 cm)
    • Weight: 5.3-6.2 oz (150-176 g)
    • Wingspan: 28.1-29.7 in (71.5-75.5 cm)

  © Dorian Anderson / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  These birds are black above and white below, with white around the eye and rosy pink legs. In females and immatures the black areas can be brownish.

• Behavior

  Black-necked Stilts wade into shallow bodies of water, seldom swimming, in pursuit of tiny aquatic invertebrates. Adults defending nests or chicks fly around and call loudly, sometimes performing a distraction display by feigning injury.
• Habitat

  Black-necked Stilts are almost always seen near shallow water, including both salt and fresh water, especially mudflats, salt pans, saltmarshes, and many human-modified habitats such as sewage ponds, evaporation pools, and flooded fields.