Pied avocet feeding in shallow water
Avocets have long legs and they sweep their long, thin, upcurved bills from side to side when feeding in the brackish or saline wetlands they prefer. The plumage is pied, sometimes also with some red. Members of this genus have webbed feet and readily swim. Their diet consists of aquatic insects and other small creatures. They nest on the ground in loose colonies. In estuarine settings they may feed on exposed bay muds or mudflats. They had been extinct in Britain for a long time because of land reclamation of their habitat and persecution by skin and egg collectors, but during or soon after World War II started breeding on reclaimed land near the Wash which was returned to salt marsh to make difficulties for any landing German invaders.
Size: 4249px × 3035px
Location: Titchfield, Fareham PO14, UK
Photo credit: © Niall Ferguson / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: avocet, avosetta, bird, black, pied, recurvirostra, wader, white
