What Kind Bird?

[PBMAX]

I found our cat MS Pink stalking these Birds in the front yard.
At 1st I thought it was just 2 then I noticed they were sort of playing opossum.
Trying to draw out the cat. So I looked around and found BABY...
Was just curious as to what kind they are they look like the lil running birds you see at the beach.
O' MS PINK was none happy with me putting a stop to her fun... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[PBMAX]

MS PINK

 

[PBMAX]

Sorry here they are zoomed...

 

[Von]

Paul, Those are Killdeer's they lay the eggs right on the ground. Not much of a nest, just a shallow hole so the eggs don't roll away!

 

[fishman]

Yessir, Von is right. A neat bird. They are famous for faking injuries, etc. to draw a predator away from their nest or babies. They are a ground nesting bird, and have a preference for bare dirt, gravel, or sand.

 

[Bird]

Yep, Von and Fishman named them. And as Von said, I've had them lay their eggs on the ground in my pasture, and as Fishman said, it was comical to watch them fake injuries to try to draw my tractor away from their nests when I was brush hogging the pasture. So I found the nests and avoided them with the mower. And the nests are a bit hard to find since there really wasn't any "nest"; just a spot where the eggs were on the ground.

 

[RobertN]

Awe, I had a Momma doing that the other week. I was filling ditches for a guy, and this bird kept walking away in front of the tractor in a certian area. Finally, I got off the tractor and kinda looked around; she faked injured wing... I knew I must be close to a nest. Saw it from about 10' away, and noted the spot. Did my tractor work from another direction. I talked to her, and told her I was gonna finish my work, and leave her nest alone. She musta believed me, cause a few minutes later she was on the nest, watching me real close. But, I finished my work without her moving again.

 

[RobertN]

Killdeer Charadrius vociferus

See em and read about em at www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i2730id.html

 

[Taylortractornut]

They named it here over the years it has become kildee from the old timers, They are impossible to hist the chicks. When I first started running a scraper when i was 14 dad had me on a building pad job. They had bare dirt and limstone lots and they have several sets of them . they would walk out in front of the scraper whe n I was loading mom pops and the little ones. Then when i was dumping or traveling they would run out infront of the machine. Then i wanted to catch one by that time i was good a scoopng things like turtles and possums up with the bowl without hurting them. They can out run a 762 scraper easily in 3rd gear. I couldnt even catch them in high. After they hatch you dont have to watch them.

 

[Dozernut]

Before I retired, a Killdeer had built a nest beside the sidewalk, in front of the district headquarters. This bird was adopted by my co-workers and we enjoyed her antics in protecting her nest.
Then one day, an employee of the landscaping business that maintained the grounds, decided the bird was a nuisance and took a leaf blower and blew her away from the nest then destroyed her eggs. He made a big mistake, the security cameras caught the act and DNR has an office in the building. That act cost him and the business thousands of dollars in penalties and fines. Moral: don't mess with the secretaries pets.