BLACK-NECKED STILT

Himantopus mexicanus

Black-necked Stilts are a species of shorebird present throughout the US and Mexico. They walk in shallow water, foraging in water and mud for invertebrates (spineless animals) such as crustaceans, snails, insects, aquatic seeds and plants, tadpoles, small fish, and frogs. They also will eat insects from the air. Black-necked Stilts make nests on the ground, often above water, in loose groups. When their young are threatened, groups of adults will flap their wings, call, and jump up and down, “popcorning” around potential predators, or try to otherwise distract them.

1.   “Black-Necked Stilt.” Audubon, 13 Nov. 2014, https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/black-necked-stilt.
2. Black-Necked Stilt Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-necked_Stilt/overview. Accessed 26 Feb. 2023.