One of the 5 oystercatchers on WAnimals
Birds · Charadriiformes · Haematopodidae
American Oystercatcher
Haematopus palliatus
Least Concern
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk.
An oystercatcher with a black head and neck and a dark brown, not black, mantle, which is what tells it apart from the Magellanic oystercatcher. The eyes are yellow with a red rim. The belly is white, with a white wedge separating the dark breast from the edge of the folded wing. In flight it shows a white band on the secondaries. The legs are pale pink.
Weight
565 g on average
Size
40 cm – 44 cm
Life expectancy
10 years
