Avocet

The upturned bill

The avocet’s bill is unique among British waders — it curves upward at the tip, sometimes reaching an angle of 30–40 degrees from horizontal. The bird uses this bill in a distinctive “scything” or “sewing” motion — wading through shallow water with the bill held slightly open and sweeping from side to side through the water, feeling for small crustaceans, aquatic insects, and worms. The technique is both precise and efficient.

RSPB symbol

The avocet is the symbol of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds — it was adopted after the bird’s dramatic return to Britain in 1947 at Minsmere and Havergate Island in Suffolk, where RSPB wardens managed habitat to encourage the newly arrived birds. The avocet had been absent as a British breeding bird for over 100 years (extirpated by hunting and drainage) and its return with active RSPB protection was a landmark moment for British conservation.

Colonial nesting

Avocets nest in loose colonies on open, sparsely vegetated islands and shorelines, where they can see approaching predators from a distance. Nests are simple scrapes lined with plant material. Both parents incubate and guard the chicks, which are mobile within hours of hatching. Colonies are noisy and aggressive in defending chicks from predators — multiple adults will mob crows, foxes, and herons.

Stilted legs

Avocets have unusually long, blue-grey legs that allow them to wade through water up to their belly in the lagoon shallows where they feed. When swimming (which they do readily), they use a duck-like pattering action on the surface.