American Avocet

About the American Avocet

The American avocet (Recurvirostra americana) is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae, found in North America. It spends much of its time foraging in shallow water or on mud flats, often sweeping its bill from side to side in water as it seeks crustacean and insect prey.

The American avocet was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the pied avocet in the genus Recurvirostra and coined the binomial name Recurvirostra americana. Gmelin based his description on that by the English ornithologist John Latham who in 1785 had described and illustrated the American avocet in his A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham cited the earlier publication by William Dampier and also that by Thomas Pennant. The genus name combines the Latin recurvus meaning 'bent' or 'curved backwards' with rostrum meaning 'bill'. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.

The American avocet is a member of the order Charadriiformes, which includes shorebirds, gulls, and alcids. Its family, Recurvirostridae, includes stilts and avocets. The... Wikipedia →