While we were at Crane Creek recently, there were so many other birds we saw besides the warblers. This Killdeer, go figure, choose to nest right next to the main path to the visitor's center.
Killdeer love to nest where there are rocks and pebbles that will camouflage their eggs, and the round rock edge next to the path must have been too irresistible, for she choose there for the nest. You can see the round stones are just about the size of the eggs, which blend in.
Trouble is, lots of people walk by there and Mrs. Killdeer would often go into her side-tilt distraction display where she would run a short distance, tilt to one side, drop her wing on that side, and spread her tail. In a more intense version, she would flutter and droop one wing, making it look like she had a broken wing. The function of this display is to lead potential predators away from the nest.
The personnel at the center finally put some trash bins alonside the nest to hide and protect it from the path and passersby and Mrs. Killdeer settled happily on her eggs.Photos @ Lillian Stokes, 2007
0 comments:
Post a Comment