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Black-necked Stilt Himantopus mexicanus

IUCN Red List history

Year Category
2012 Least Concern
2009 Least Concern
2008 Least Concern
2004 Not Recognised
2000 Not Recognised
1994 Not Recognised
1988 Not Recognised

Species attributes

Migratory status full migrant Forest dependency Does not normally occur in forest
Land mass type   Average mass 181.83 g

Population & trend

  Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
No. of mature individuals 200000-2000000 poor Estimated 2009
Population trend Stable -
Number of subpopulations - - -
Largest subpopulation - - -
Generation length (yrs) 7.3 - - -
Population justification: Estimate includes totals for 'Himantopus melanurus'.
Trend justification: The overall population trend is stable (Wetlands International 2006). This species has undergone a small or statistically insignificant increase over the last 40 years in North America (data from Breeding Bird Survey and/or Christmas Bird Count: Butcher and Niven 2007) Note, however, that these surveys cover less than 50% of the species's range in North America.

Country/Territory distribution

Country/Territory Occurrence status Extinct Breeding Non-breeding Passage
Anguilla (to UK) Native No      
Antigua and Barbuda Native No      
Argentina Native No      
Aruba (to Netherlands) Native No      
Bahamas Native No      
Barbados Native No      
Belize Native No      
Bermuda (to UK) Native No      
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (to Netherlands) Native No      
Brazil Native No      
Canada Native No      
Cayman Islands (to UK) Native No      
Chile Native No      
Colombia Native No      
Costa Rica Native No      
Cuba Native No      
Curaçao (to Netherlands) Native No      
Dominica Native No      
Dominican Republic Native No      
Ecuador Native No      
El Salvador Native No      
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Native No      
French Guiana Native No      
Grenada Native No      
Guadeloupe (to France) Native No      
Guatemala Native No      
Guyana Native No      
Haiti Native No      
Honduras Native No      
Jamaica Native No      
Martinique (to France) Native No      
Mexico Native No      
Montserrat (to UK) Native No      
Nicaragua Native No      
Panama Native No      
Paraguay Native No      
Peru Native No      
Puerto Rico (to USA) Native No      
Sint Maarten (to Netherlands) Native No      
St Kitts and Nevis Native No      
St Lucia Native No      
St Vincent and the Grenadines Native No      
Suriname Native No      
Trinidad and Tobago Native No      
Turks and Caicos Islands (to UK) Native No      
Uruguay Native No      
USA Native No      
Venezuela Native No      
Virgin Islands (to UK) Native No      
Virgin Islands (to USA) Native No      

Important Bird Areas where this species has triggered the IBA criteria

Country/Territory IBA Name IBA link
Argentina Bahía de Samborombón y Punta Rasa site factsheet
Argentina Reserva de Uso Múltiple Bañados del Río Dulce y Laguna Mar Chiquita site factsheet
Chile Desembocadura del Río Imperial site factsheet
Paraguay Lagunas Saladas - Riacho Yacaré site factsheet
Puerto Rico (to USA) Jobos Bay site factsheet
Puerto Rico (to USA) Suroeste site factsheet
USA Bear River Bay UT02 site factsheet
USA Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge site factsheet
USA James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge site factsheet
USA Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge site factsheet
USA Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge site factsheet
USA Salton Sea site factsheet

Habitats & altitude

Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Marine Intertidal Mud Flats and Salt Flats major non-breeding
Marine Intertidal Salt Marshes (Emergent Grasses) suitable breeding
Marine Neritic Estuaries major non-breeding
Wetlands (inland) Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands major breeding
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) major non-breeding
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) major breeding
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Saline, Brackish or Alkaline Lakes suitable non-breeding
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Saline, Brackish or Alkaline Lakes suitable breeding
Wetlands (inland) Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) suitable breeding
Altitude 0 - 1600 m Occasional altitudinal limits  

Utilisation

Purpose Primary form used Life stage used Source Scale Level Timing
Pets Whole Adults and juveniles Wild International Non-trivial Recent

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2013) Species factsheet: Himantopus mexicanus. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 22/05/2013. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2013) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 22/05/2013.

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife

To contribute to discussions on the evaluation of the IUCN Red List status of Globally Threatened Birds, please visit BirdLife's Globally Threatened Bird Forums.

Key facts
Current IUCN Red List category Least Concern
Family Recurvirostridae (Stilts and avocets)
Species name author (M
Population size 200000-2000000 mature individuals
Population trend Stable
Distribution size (breeding/resident) -
Country endemic? No
Links to further information
- Summary information on this species