Black-necked Stilt
On Friday, 5 August 2022, an Ontario birder who summers in New Brunswick was checking for shorebirds along the shoreline of the St. John River between the bridges in Hartland, NB. We are fortunate this woman was familiar with shorebirds and recognized that what she saw through her binoculars was a rare species for New Brunswick, a Black-necked Stilt. She also knew how to alert others by contacting a local birder who posted it to online discussion groups. That began a magical day for birding for a handful of New Brunswick birders.
It is unknown when the bird arrived in Hartland and from where it came. It undoubtedly is a vagrant which migrated up (or down?) the St. John River. It is a male adult and is probably dispersing from the breeding area before returning south for the winter. Just how far are we referring to here? Well, the Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) normally summers in southern Florida, the coastlines of Georgia and North and South Carolina, the mid-western and western states and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan. They winter in California, the Gulf coast and southern Florida south to the tropics. So this bird is far from the normal movements of this species.
And how rare is it in New Brunswick? We have had 4 recorded occurrences since records have been kept: 1862, 1880, 1982, 2000. Nova Scotia has had a few records as well. The 1862 and 1880 records were confirmed because the birds were 'collected' (shot and sent to the museum for mounting). Unfortunately that is what they did in those days. The 1982 and 2000 records are listed as 'unconfirmed' which actually means that no specimen was collected and no photos were taken. But, today we are a photographic generation and there are lots of photos of this visitor, I would guess well over 1000 were taken that day. All the photos in this blog post were taken by me.
Hartland is a very picturesque place. We wandered around along the shoreline which was mowed grass in most cases checking for the bird from both sides of the river. We crossed the historic covered bridge to move from one side to the other. The bird was feeding along the shoreline of the river and the island located there. The shoreline was composed of rounded rocks of various sizes with a bit of sand. On the east side a brook flows into the river bringing cold water and rich aquatic food. This made good feeding for the Black-necked Stilt and the 2 Lesser Yellowlegs which it was keeping company with some of the time. Viewing and locating the bird was difficult because we were looking into the sun for a good part of the time. As bright and beautiful as the bird is, it was well camouflaged with the bright sunlight reflecting off the water and the black of the wet rocks. The difficulty of seeing this bird was a surprise to me. Even though it is a rather large shorebird, 33 cm long with very long legs, it still was difficult to see. One could pick it up only when it was moving or silhouetted against the bright water.
Please see a previous post on this blog for information on the life history of the Black-necked Stilt; 'Black-necked Stilt - Nemesis Bird', June 4, 2022.
Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt Showing the Very Long Legs
This species was my 'nemesis bird', meaning I have been trying to see it for at least 30 years. I was just never in the right place at the right time while out west or in the south. I have chased around flocks of American Avocets which it sometimes flocks with but with no success. I had missed the 2000 bird from Jacquet River by 15 minutes. But on that special Friday luck was with me. I had many good looks at the bird and was able to photograph it from a safe distance with no disturbance to the bird at all. It was fun to share the excitement with the group of NB birders for which it was also a 'life bird'. For me it was the 351st avian species seen in NB over my lifetime!
Black-necked Stilt Feeding Along Shoreline
Black-necked Stilt Picking Insects off Mud
Black-necked Stilt Feeding From Rocks What did I notice about this bird? First, it is a beautiful shorebird. The black and white plumage pattern is striking. And probably the most striking feature is those impossibly long legs! They are bright pink (or sometimes red) and the feet are small. The literature tells us they are partly webbed enabling the bird to be able to swim although it rarely does. The black bill is very fine and dagger-like and about 6 to 7 cm long. The black crown which runs down the back of the neck is offset by the white on the forehead, throat and ventral neck and especially by the white eyebrow patch. In spite of the long legs, the bird is very agile. When it flies the legs are extended straight out behind. It obviously can fly very well given the distance it has come! In summary, a very striking bird and so exciting to see.
We were able to compare it to the two Lesser Yellowlegs it was hanging out with. See the photos below. The Black-necked Stilt looks larger in the photos in comparison because it was closer to the camera. Note, the Lesser Yellowlegs are 27 cm long compared to the stilt which is 36 cm long. This measurement is taken from the tip of the bill to the tip of the tail and does not include the long legs. The stilt's body is actually quite small.
Black-necked Stilt and Lesser Yellowlegs
Black-necked Stilt and Lesser Yellowlegs
The literature tells us that the Black-necked Stilt is considerably vocal. Unfortunately we did not here its 'kek, kek, kek'. It was far enough away that we might have missed it.
Many thanks to the NB birders and to our ON visitor for making it possible for many of us to see and learn about this species. Unfortunately the bird was seen only that one day. We hope it won't be another 20-plus years before we see one again.
