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Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta) Alternate name(s): "Black-capped Avocet", "Eurasian Avocet", "Avocet" German name(s): "Säbelschnäbler" Size: 42-45 cm (incl. bill, ca. 8 cm; excl. legs); wing span: 77-80 cm Body mass: 230-430 g Wing loading [g/cm2]: 0.45-0.60

Europe: Family Group 9 Family Group 9 Table Red Phalarope Red-necked Phalarope Eurasian Stone-curlew Black-winged Stilt Pied Avocet Collared Pratincole Eurasian Oystercatcher Common Ringed Plover Little Ringed Plover Kentish Plover Grey Plover European Golden Plover Eurasian Dotterel Sociable Lapwing Northern Lapwing Spur-winged Lapwing Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Pied Avocets are medium-sized, long-legged waders. Overall, their plumage is black-and-white, with a black crown and nape of the neck, black wing bars and outer flight feathers, while the rest is all-white. The irises are dark, the strongly upcurved bill is dark-grey, while the long legs and feet are bluish-grey.

Taxonomy, classification See Pied Avocet at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Pied Avocet is available HERE . Pied Avocets are a partly migratory species. Their breeding range encompasses parts of temperate Europe and western and Central Asia. Most Pied Avocets, certainly those from the nothern part of their breeding range, spend the northern winters in Africa or southern Asia. In Europe Pied Avocets are permanent residents along parts of the French Atlantic coastline, parts of the Iberian coastline and along parts of the northern Mediterranean coast. In summer they extend their breeding range to the Benelux countries' North Sea coastline, continuing along the northern German and Danish coastline into the southern Baltic Sea, where they are found in southern Sweden and along part of the coastline of the Baltic states. There is a larger breeding population in the Danube river valley, from about the Czech Republic eastwards to the northern Black Sea coastline and on to the northern coastline of the Caspian Sea, northward of the Caucasus mountains. In winter the northern populations migrate southwards, spending the winters mostly around the Mediterranean Sea, but also along the French Atlantic coastline and parts of Cornwall. Others migrate farther southwards, to Africa. Pied Avocets have a preference for habitats with shallow brackish water and mudflats, both for feeding and breeding.

Sightings Click here for sighting information D. Wilczynska reports spotting Pied Avocets in a lagoon near Santa Giusta, near Oristano, western Sardinia, Italy, in June 2016. H. Dahlem-Senger reports finding Pied Avocets at Naturschutzgebiet (Nature Reserve) Wallnau/Fehmarn, on the German Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn, Germany, in June 2018, where they were nesting at the time. D. Wilczynska spotted a single Pied Avocet at River Bug Landscape Park, near Malkinia, Masovia, Poland, in June 2018, where they are uncommon. J. Pires reports finding Pied Avocets regularly in the Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, where they are known to breed. They are also found regularly in other coastal locations in southern to central Portugal. H. Dahlem-Senger found Pied Avocets breeding in large numbers at Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, in May 2023. A. Sarok reports spotting Pied Avocets in Vojvodina, Serbia, in the timeframe 2010-2024.

Photos

ADULT

PAIR

Many bird species exhibit sexual dimorphism, i.e., male and female have differing appearances which can be quite subtle.
Male Pied Avocets, left, have jet-black parts and a relatively long, only slightly upcurved bill; the dark parts of females are more brownish and their bill tends to be shorter with more upward curvature.

Frontal and dorsal views of two Pied Avocets; the bird on the right, with a long bill with small curvature, is a male
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Near-lateral view of two Pied Avocets; the bird on the right is probably a male, the one on the left a female(?)
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral and dorsal views of a pair of Pied Avocets (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

MALE

Near-frontal view of a male Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a male Pied Avocet foraging in a mudflat - note the long bill with small upward curvature and the neat-black cap
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Montijo, Tejo estuary, Portugal, November 2021]

Lateral view of a male Pied Avocet foraging by the sandy bank of a river (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[River Bug Landscape Park, near Malkinia, Masovia, Poland, June 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a male Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[EVOA, Tejo estuary, Portugal, May 2023]

Dorsal view of a Pied Avocet foraging in a mudflat (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Montijo, Tejo estuary, Portugal, November 2021]

FEMALE

Near-frontal view of a foraging female(?) Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Rio Coina, Palhais, Barreiro, Setubal, Portugal, February 2018]

Lateral view of a female Pied Avocet looking at the observer - note the brownish, rather than black dark parts
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[EVOA, Tejo estuary, Portugal, May 2023]

Lateral view of a female Pied Avocet - note the short bill with strong upward curvature (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sapal Castro Marim, Vila Real Santo Antonio, Algarve, Portugal, October 2022]

Lateral view of a female(?) Pied Avocet - note the rather short bill with pronounced upward curvature
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral view of a snoozing female(?) Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Naturschutzgebiet Wallnau/Fehmarn, Fehmarn, Germany, June 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a female Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sapal Castro Marim, Vila Real Santo Antonio, Algarve, Portugal, October 2022]

Near-dorsal view of a female(?) Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Distant lateral view of a female(?) Pied Avocet in flight (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral view of a flock of Pied Avocets foraging in an estuary; the upper left bird, with a shorter, more upturned bill, is a female (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, October 2017]

Sex unknown

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet stretching a wing (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet in a lagoon, with a Greater Flamingo behind (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet resting on the edge of a lagoon (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Pied Avocets in a marsh (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[October 2018]

Flock of Pied Avocets foraging in an estuary (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, April 2017]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets resting by the water's edge (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Real S. Antonio, Algarve, Portugal, September 2020]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet in flight (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, March 2019]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, March 2019]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, March 2019]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo Estuary Nature Reserve, Portugal, January 2020]

Part of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sado estuary, Setubal, Portugal, February 2025]

Pied Avocet coming in to land and, in the process, scaring the wits out of a Greater Flamingo (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Near-lateral view of a resting immature male(?) Pied Avocet (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Real S. Antonio, Algarve, Portugal, September 2020]

Lateral view of a juvenile Pied Avocet; note the grey cap (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Salgados, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet with its chick (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, September 2019]

Pied Avocet resting in shallow water while a chick is foraging nearby (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet chick (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Pied Avocet protecting its 3 chicks (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Pied Avocet protecting its 3 chicks (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Pied Avocet protecting 2 chicks (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Pied Avocet checking out the observer while a young chick is out in the open (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Pied Avocet with a young chick (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, May 2023]

Pied Avocet with a young chick (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, May 2023]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Apr - Jun

Eggs: 3 - 4

Incubation period: 23 - 25 days

Fledging age: Precocial

Pied Avocet chicks leave their nest at a very young age, soon after the last egg has hatched. They can fly at 35-42 days of age.

Nest building: ?

Incubation: Female & male

Dependent care: Female & male

Nest

Type: Scrape

Material: Sandy soil, grass/twig lining

Height above ground: N/A

Frontal view of a Pied Avocet on its nest (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Naturschutzgebiet Wallnau/Fehmarn, Fehmarn, Germany, June 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a Pied Avocet on its nest (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Naturschutzgebiet Wallnau/Fehmarn, Fehmarn, Germany, June 2018]

Pied Avocets on their nests (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, May 2023]

Pied Avocets on their nests (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, May 2023]

Pied Avocets on their nests (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Parc Natural de s'Albufera de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain, May 2023]

Eggs

Size: 54 x 36 mm

Colour: Creamy, with small dark-brown to black speckles

Shape: Long tapered oval

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal

Mobility: Partially migratory

Elementary unit: Mob/flock

In Europe, Pied Avocets are sedentary at suitable sites along part of the northern Mediterranean and along the Atlantic and North Sea coastline. Pied Avocets breed in loose colonies. In some locations (in Italy including Sicily and Greece) Pied Avocets overwinter. Elsewhere in Europe they are summer breeding migrants. Outside the breeding season Pied Avocets can form substantial flocks.

Flock of Pied Avocets in shallow water (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sado estuary, Portugal, January 2023]

Lateral view of a flock of Pied Avocets in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sado estuary, Portugal, January 2023]

Food, Diet

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet scooping up small prey (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Rio Coina, Palhais, Barreiro, Setubal, Portugal, February 2018]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet scooping up small prey (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Rio Coina, Palhais, Barreiro, Setubal, Portugal, December 2017]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet scooping up small prey (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Naturschutzgebiet Wallnau/Fehmarn, Fehmarn, Germany, June 2018]

Lateral view of a Pied Avocet making a splash while foraging (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Juvenile Pied Avocet foraging in shallow water close to one of its parents (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Juvenile Pied Avocet gobbling up its prey... (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

... before continuing the search for food (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Santa Giusta, Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

piavoct_jp_20230502.mp3

(Portugal)

? (flock)

© JP

More Pied Avocet sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

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