Av'ocet or Av'oset, a wading bird found in temperate regions of Europe and America during the summer, but migrating south in winter. The bill is long, slender, elastic and bent upward toward the tip. The legs are long, the feet webbed, and the plumage, which is generally light, is varied with black on the wings and brown on the head, neck and breast. In the western states the avocet is considered a good game bird. It feeds in the marshes, where, with its sensitive beak, it scoops up the worms and small crustaceans from the mud.