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Home » Species » Charadriiformes » Recurvirostridae » Himantopus » Himantopus himantopus - Linnaeus, 1758
Species
Himantopus himantopus Linnaeus, 1758
Nomenclature
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Family: RecurvirostridaeGenus: Himantopus
Species:
Himantopus himantopus Linnaeus, 1758
Usage:
valid
Vernacular names:
Vernacular name:
Black-winged Stilt, Common Stilt; Pied/White-headed Stilt
Media
SUMMARY
They have long pink legs, a long thin black bill and are blackish above and white below, with a white head and neck with a varying amount of black. Males have a black back, often with greenish gloss. Females' backs have a brown hue, contrasting with the black remiges. In the populations that have the top of the head normally white at least in winter, females tend to have less black on head and neck all year round, while males often have much black, particularly in summer. This difference is not clear-cut, however, and males usually get all-white heads in winter. Immature birds are grey instead of black and have a markedly sandy hue on the wings, with light feather fringes appearing as a whitish line in flight.