Stilt is a common name for several species of birds in the family Recurvirostridae, which also includes those known as avocets. They are found in brackish or saline wetlands in warm or hot climates.
They have extremely long legs, hence the group name, and long thin bills. Stilts typically feed on aquatic insects and other small creatures and nest on the ground surface in loose colonies.
Most sources recognize 6 species in 2 genera, although the White-backed and Hawaiian stilts are occasionally considered subspecies of the Black-necked Stilt.
- Black-winged Stilt, Himantopus himantopus
- Pied Stilt or White-headed Stilt, Himantopus himantopus leucocephalus
- Hawaiian Stilt or aeʻo, Himantopus knudseni
- White-backed Stilt, Himantopus melanurus
- Black-necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus
- Black Stilt, Himantopus novaezelandiae
- Banded Stilt, Cladorhynchus leucocephalus
A fossil stilt has been described as Himantopus olsoni, based on remains recovered in the Late Miocene Big Sandy Formation of Wickieup, USA.
Media related to Stilt at Wikimedia Commons