The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Avocet \Av"o*cet\, Avoset \Av"o*set\ ([a^]v"[-o]*s[e^]t), n. [F.
   avocette: cf. It. avosetta, Sp. avoceta.] (Zool.)
   A grallatorial bird, of the genus Recurvirostra; the
   scooper. The bill is long and bend upward toward the tip. The
   American species is Recurvirostra Americana. [Written also
   avocette.]
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

avocet
    n 1: long-legged web-footed black-and-white shorebird with
         slender upward-curving bill