When Kildare Birds Have Babies Hatch Before Other Where Do the Y Go

This past April, killdeer began appearing on the mudflats around a lake near my home in the oak woodlands south of Yosemite National Park. I had high hopes of photographing their nesting activity and offspring. Following is my account of three pairs mating, five nests, twelve eggs, and vii chicks. It'south complicated, and so sit down downwards, relax, and read on.

Killdeer are on constant high alert. They will most likely see y'all earlier y'all run across them. You know you've been spotted when yous hear their alarm calls: shrill, repetitive, and ear piercing. The audio travels a good i/4 mile. Appropriately, the Latin name given this member of the Plover family is "charadrius vociferus."

As for the mutual name, what an odd appellation for a bird, don't y'all think? 18th century naturalists settled on the name "killdeer" considering the bird regularly seems to vocalize that audio (kee dee dee). Listen to the recording below, and meet what yous remember:

Killdeer on nest, hiding. in plain sight, in centre of photograph.

Killdeer typically lay their eggs on the ground, in a shallow low surrounded by low vegetation. Add a few stones, peradventure, and that'southward about it. Because of the colour of its plumage, the adult attention the nest blends right in, then much and so that you would be hard pressed see it, even if you knew it was there.

It was in mid-May that I discovered my first killdeer nest. I might have stepped on information technology while walking downwardly a slope to the water'south border had 1 developed not been wildly performing broken wing display.

Killdeer feigns a broken wing to distract predator from nest.

"Broken wing" is a distraction tactic that some birds exhibit to depict predators away from the nest or their flightless chicks. Feigning injury, killdeer hobble a brusque distance, and then pause while making a shrill, trilling audio. When the predator comes near, the bird suddenly moves further away, once again and again. Once far from the nest, the bird flies off, leaving the predator backside to await for something else to eat. Their flight call seems to say: "Ha, I certain fooled you." I can attest from personal experience that this behavior is quite constructive in dealing with camera-toting predators.

Killdeer broken wing display behavior.

The egg laying had simply begun in this first nest, as evidenced past the single egg which I quickly photographed before retreating. You can imagine how pleased I was at my good fortune: at the top of the slope I would take a good vantage point from which to observe ongoing nest action, and perhaps photograph a brood of 4-half-dozen chicks in about 30 days.

A single killdeer egg blends into the environment..

Sadly, that vision was not to be realized. A few days later, I returned to detect the nest had been inadvertently destroyed by human activity. Then much for my dream of taking photos of newly hatched killdeer chicks.

The following calendar week, nevertheless, I came upon a second nesting pair. Their nest was off the lakeshore path, in a more secluded surface area. Nearby was a natural blind behind which I could quietly observe the birds when information technology came time for the eggs to hatch. I felt more confident nearly the success of this clutch.

Meanwhile, an unseasonal oestrus moving ridge moved in. Could the developing embryos survive the unusually warm temperatures? Not to worry. The adults, having dampened their feathers in the lake, took turns standing over the eggs to shade them and keep them cool. On June 2nd, two chicks hatched.

Two newly hatched killdeer chicks side by side to their egg shells.

While Killdeer are classified as shorebirds, they are commonly found far from the shore. Grazed fields are often a practiced identify to find them. Imagine the danger that livestock present to these robin-sized birds. Remarkably, killdeer have developed another lark behavior called "ungulate display." Rushing toward the far larger interloper, the bird flaps its wings and takes an aggressive posture. I'm not sure how a moo-cow might react, only I was startled when information technology happened to me equally I came out from behind my blind.

Killdeer flaps wings to startle predators.

Killdeer adult performs 'ungulate" brandish.

Days-onetime killdeer chick with single neck ring stands tall.

A day later on, I returned to photograph the broken egg shells, but at that place were none to be found; nor could I find any evidence of the nest. Apparently, as a precaution against predators noticing vulnerable, newly-hatched chicks, killdeer immediately remove the egg shells from the nesting expanse.

Continuing my walk effectually the lake, I came upon a third adult pair. With them were two chicks, no more a few weeks old, foraging the mudflats. Things are looking up, I mused. We at present accept a tally of four killdeer chicks foraging the lakeshore.

Newly hatched killdeer chick prances along lakeshore.

Since these precocial chicks won't begin to wing for well-nigh xxx days, survival depends upon their ability put distance between themselves and danger. You lot would exist hard pressed to keep up with them, and then quickly do their little legs conduct them away.

When foraging for insects or other invertebrates, killdeer movement in fits and starts. When they suspension, invariably they bob their heads up and downwardly as if they have a bad case of the hiccups. Really, they are pumping their tail, and the head follows along. It's a joy to watch them.

Killdeer adults crossing Xs.

Killdeer are loftier-strung birds. If they've spotted you nearby, you lot may witness a nervous and humorous dance that goes similar this: ii killdeer arroyo each other, and pause to bob their heads; they then pass adjacent, only to stop, turn and confront each other again, bob their heads, and repeat the process.

Mid-June delivered some other surprise: a fourth killdeer nest. This one contained four eggs. It was located on a large, partially submerged bedrock near fifty feet from the shoreline.

Imagine the serendipity of the situation: this nest is on a mini island, the chicks volition exist safe from land predators, and they won't be able to run away from me. Perfect.

Killdeer adult and nest with four eggs.

Killdeer may have from one to iii broods per flavor. Since the location of this nest was quite well-nigh to where the very first nest had been, I desire to believe that the same killdeer pair was trying once more. I can't prove it, but that is what intuition tells me. Isn't that a wonderful thought?

Coincidently, June - July is also molting flavor for our resident geese and ducks. These hefty birds tin't fly until their flight feathers are replaced, and then during this interval they spend much of their fourth dimension only grooming themselves on shore.

The boulder seemed to have a special attraction to these much larger waterfowl. Yous know from my Canada goose article here what that means: up to three pounds of soggy calling cards each mean solar day. So much so that I named this new nesting site "Bird Poop Rock."

Bird Poop Rock occupied past four ducks, i turtle, and two nesting killdeer.

Inquiry has shown that 53% of killdeer eggs are lost to predators. With all the comings and goings on this granite outcropping (geese, ducks, turtles, and grackles), I feared the combination could not terminate well. Indeed, 4 days later, that nest, too, was gone. All that remained was bird poop.

Following unlucky birds is non an uplifting endeavor. After the catastrophe at Bird Poop Rock, my interest in killdeer began to wane. My photographic attention drifted towards the juvenile greenish herons now visiting the lakeshore (that will exist a future article).

But wait. If you have been counting, you know from my introduction that i nest, three eggs, and three chicks take yet to be accounted for. It is a happy accounting, so please go on reading.

Killdeer cleaved wing display.

On August 2nd, at the very location of the first nest I came upon in mid-May, I spotted three killdeer chicks foraging on the mudflat. But one adult was present; it was sounding alarm calls and performing broken wing displays similar at that place was no tomorrow. This individual had to be one of the original nesting adults, but this time - on the tertiary try - it had a successful brood.

Adult killdeer with days-one-time chick.

Days-sometime killdeer chick walks behind mallard.

Newly hatched killdeer chicks cant't fly, just they tin swim. I know this considering the lone developed and iii chicks took upwards residence on a spit of state non far from the shore a few days after hatching. It is fascinating to picket them charily dip their feet into the water, and and so beginning to paddle, with cervix stretched high equally if to go along themselves from sinking.

With head held loftier, killdeer chick swims apace from one shore to another.

Killdeer chick swimming to shore.

After about iv weeks out of their shells, the chicks began attempts at flying. They stretched and flapped their wings while standing in identify. After several attempts, one chick flapped while running, and went airborne for a second or two, just like the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk.

Killdeer chick flexing wings.

Killdeer chick flapping its wings.

Killdeer chick flapping its wings.

Killdeer attempting to wing.

Killdeer chick goes airborne.

And that concludes my account of three developed mating pairs, five nests, twelve eggs, and the 7 killdeer chicks that hatched on the shores of Blue Heron Lake near my home.

Parent of the three killdeer chicks makes a landing.

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Source: https://www.robertgroosphotography.com/home/killdeer

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