I arrived at work last Tuesday morning to find my parking space occupied by a Killdeer! Now you may not think much about this but as I pulled up to my normal parking spot I knew by her actions that nesting time was here.
This very protective mother began to try to draw me away from her nest on the ground by acting injured. Since these birds are ground nesters they have developed the defense of distracting would be predators away from the nest by acting like they have a broken wing or some other bodily injury. What predator in their right mind would not go chasing after an injured prey for a quick easy snack. Ah! but as she lures you further away from her nest she gets a litter more healthy and she stays just out of reach of any would be enemy. Most of the time the predator chases the bird and forgets about the nest or never even knew it was there.
Below, open nest on the ground with one egg. They usually lay four eggs and they blend into the rocky ground very well.
Mother sitting back on the nest after coast is clear.
"Birds are indicators of the enviornment. If they are in trouble, we know we'll soon be in trouble."
Roger Tory Peterson(1908-1996): American Naturalist, Ornithologist, Artist, Educator
2 comments:
Great shots Randy - I'm surprised you could get shots of her feigning injury - they're usually pretty agitated. We have them here too - a couple of years ago I 'stumbled' onto a nest with 3 eggs. I went to get my wife to show her but it took me 30 minutes to find them again, they were so well camouflaged. I marked the nest with a few stones so I could keep an eye on them - 2 hatched successfully. Amazing to watch, and what a great defense !
Thanks Rick, they are amazing to watch. The little ones look like puff balls on stilts when they first hatch. Spring and Nature is going fast and furious around here as I have Bluebirds, Mallards, Canada Geese and Opsreys all nesting within site of my office.
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