stilt

1. Either of a pair of long, slender poles each equipped with a raised footrest to enable the user to walk elevated above the ground.
2. Any of various tall posts or pillars used as support, as for a dock or building: a beach house on stilts.
3. 1. An American wading bird (Himantopus mexicanus) that has long pink legs, black and white plumage, and a long slender bill, and that ranges from the United States to Peru and Brazil and is related to the avocet.
   2. A related bird (Cladorhynchus leucocephalus) of Australia.

[Middle English stilte.]

(click to enlarge)
Black-necked stilt (Himantopus himantopus mexicanus) (credit: G.W. Robinson/Root Resources)

Any of certain species of shorebirds (family Recurvirostridae) that have long thin legs and a long slender bill and inhabit warm regions worldwide. Stilts, 14 – 18 in. (35 – 45 cm) long, live around ponds, probing in mud and weedy shallows for crustaceans and other small aquatic animals. The common stilt (Himantopus himantopus) is variably black-and-white with pink legs and red eyes.

For more information on stilt, visit Britannica.com.

1. A structural area or element lifting another such above its regular position.
2. A post which raises a structure above ground or water level.
3. A member placed above or below another vertical member for additional height.
4. See stilted arch.
5. Of a door frame: see base anchor.
6. A brace in bridging.

This article is about the type of bird. For the poles or walking supports, see stilts.

For the journal of the Australasian Wader Studies Group, see Stilt

Black-winged Stilt/Common Stilt
Adult H. h. himantopus
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Subclass: Neornithes Infraclass: Neognathae Superorder: Neoaves Order: Charadriiformes Suborder: Charadrii Family: Recurvirostridae Genus: Himantopus

Stilt is a common name for several species of birds in the family Recurvirostridae, which also includes those known as avocets. They are found in brackish or saline wetlands in warm or hot climates.

They have extremely long legs, hence the group name, and long thin bills. Stilts typically feed on aquatic insects and other small creatures and nest on the ground surface in loose colonies.

Handbook of Birds of the World recognises three species in two genera:

• Black-winged Stilt or White-backed Stilt, Himantopus himantopus
  • Pied Stilt or White-headed Stilt, Himantopus (himantopus) leucocephalus
  • Hawaiian Stilt or aeʻo, Himantopus (himantopus/mexicanus) knudseni
  • White-backed Stilt, Himantopus (himantopus/mexicanus) melanurus
  • Black-necked Stilt, Himantopus (himantopus/mexicanus) mexicanus
• Black Stilt, Himantopus novaezelandiae
• Banded Stilt, Cladorhynchus leucocephalus

A fossil stilt has been described as Himantopus olsoni, based on remains recovered in the Late Miocene Big Sandy Formation of Wickieup, USA.

• Media related to Stilt at Wikimedia Commons

References

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - stylte, stylteløber, trefod
v. tr. - gå på stylter, sætte på trefod

Nederlands (Dutch)
steltloper, stelt, op stelten zetten

Français (French)
n. - échasse, (Constr) pilotis
v. tr. - placer/élever sur pilotis

Deutsch (German)
n. - Stelze, Pfahl, (zo.) Stelzenläufer
v. - stelzen, erheben

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ξυλοπόδαρο, πάσσαλος, στύλος ανόρθωσης, (μτφ.) καλοβατικό πουλί
v. - στήνω σε πασσάλους

Italiano (Italian)
trampolo, palafitta, trampoliere

Português (Portuguese)
n. - andar em andas
v. - andas (f pl)

Русский (Russian)
ходуля, свая, стойка, зуек долгоногий, ставить на стойки

Español (Spanish)
n. - cigoñuela, zanco, poste, pilar, sotabanco, atifle, esteva (del arado)
v. tr. - levantar sobre zancos

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - stylta, påle, styltlöpare
v. - uppstyltad, högtravande

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
高跷, 脚柱, 支柱, 使踏上高跷

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 高蹺, 腳柱, 支柱
v. tr. - 使踏上高蹺

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 대말, 죽마, 지주
v. tr. - 죽마에 태우다, 각주에 올려 놓다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 竹馬, 支柱

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) عمود خشبي, ركيزة (فعل) رفع على ركائز خشبيه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קב, כלונס-הליכה, ציפור מים עם רגליים ארוכות, תמך מיוחד לכלי קרמיקה בתנור‬
v. tr. - ‮הרים על קבי הגבהה‬

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