The Black-necked Stilt is a wader bird, meaning it walks in shallow waters, looking for small prey to snatch. It does not dive and is not usually seen swimming. The stilt has a streamlined body and extremely long pink legs, allowing it to wade in deeper waters than other, smaller waders found in Costa Rica like the Plovers and Sandpipers. It has a contrasting black and white body. When startled, they usually fly away in a wide circle and return to a similar place they were before.