The black-winged stilt is an incredibly elegant and graceful bird.

Its beauty has earned it the Maltese name Fra servjent and the Italian name Cavalliere d’Italia (Knight of Italy), a reference to members of a Knightly order.

It is a spring and autumn migrant but it can also be seen in winter and summer, particularly at the Għadira Nature Reserve.

Migrating stilts sometimes spend several days there, resting and feeding while others spend weeks and months. Sometimes they have also bred at the reserve.

The black-winged stilt is found in many parts of the world although ornithologists do not yet agree among themselves whether some populations should be considered as forming part of the same or different species.

Black-winged stilts breed in marshes, shallow lakes and ponds, mostly in tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world.

It is widely spread around the Mediterranean and sometimes reaches and even breeds in areas north of its normal breeding grounds.

Stilts are waders, that is, birds adapted to living along the water’s edge.

They have long toes which allow them to walk on soft mud without sinking and long legs which make it possible for them to walk in water without wetting their feathers.

The long, narrow beak is useful for picking up small organisms.

There are many species of waders, all sharing the above characteristics.

However, they generally have different-sized beaks and legs which allow them to feed in waters of different depths and find food in mud at different levels, thus avoiding direct competition among themselves.

Waders can be seen throughout the year. One species, the little ringed plover, is now regularly breeding at the Għadira Nature Reserve.

The little ringed plover can be seen throughout most of the summer months.

While these plovers are still taking care of their young, waders that breed in the northern tundras – where summers are very short – are already starting their journey south, stopping along the route in suitable places to rest and feed.

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