![]() I once sawĪ newly-hatched killdeer chick in front of the Co-ed Theater in Fairfield, Iowa.Īn adult killdeer was leading it on foot down the sidewalk. To nest in gravel, and they will take it where they find it. Shorebirds in that they often nest and live far from water. Killdeer are technically in the family of shorebirds, they are unusual To 28 days of incubating for the chicks to hatch. Though the first-laid egg spends a longer time in the shell than the last-laid,Īll the killdeer chicks have the same development period. The killdeer embryos inside the first-laid threeĮggs do not start developing while the eggs are sitting out in the cold.īut when they feel the warmth of the parent killdeer, all four killdeerĮmbryos start developing at the same time. Killdeer start sitting on the eggs to incubate them as soon as all theĮggs have been laid. Pleasure of visitors to the tennis courts. Parents for a couple of weeks, until the young could fly, to the extreme Three of the fourĮggs hatched, and the babies ran around in the parking lot with their Of the nest, I thought its chances of success were slight.ĭay after day the mother and father killdeer took turns sitting on theĮggs, not in the least perturbed by the human traffic. The female chose to lay her eggs aboutįour inches away from the curb of the main walk. I once observed a pair nesting in the parking The eggs materialize again out of the pattern of pebbles.Īre tolerant of humans. I examined the groundĬarefully each time I moved my feet, to make sure I didn't step on theįound the killdeer nest, I glanced away for a moment, and when I lookedīack again, the eggs had vanished! After some more puzzled study, I saw It took me a long time before I found the nest. Note of a bush close to the spot and walked straight to the site. When it flew up from a crouched position on the gravel. Killdeer nest was on a railroad easement. In the "nest," which is just a slight depression in the gravel.ĭawn Eason took this photo and kindly allowed us to show it on the Birdwatching Lovely photo at right shows an adult killdeer with the first egg laid Its surroundings, a killdeer nest blends marvelously into the background.įurthermore, the speckled eggs themselves look like stones. Since there is no structure to stand out from ![]() In the gravel to hold the eggs, but they don't line it at all, or line More nourishment built into the killdeer egg, to sustain the embryo for Although adult robins and killdeerĪre the same size, a killdeer's egg is twice as big as a robin's. A one-day-old killdeer chick is actually two weeks older It's two weeks or more before they matureĮnough to leave the nest, and even after they leave it, their parentsīirds stay in the egg twice as long as altricial birds, so they have more In their nests, relying utterly on their parents to bring them food and Hatch blind, naked, and helpless are called altricial, which comesįrom a Greek word meaning "wet nurse." Robins are altricial,Īs are blue jays, cardinals and most other birds. (It is shown here with their permission.)Īre chickens, ducks, and quail. Source as "precocious.") This newly hatched killdeer chick, with bright eyes and fluffy feathers, is copyright Scott and Tami Barrick. Means "ripened beforehand." (The word comes from the same Latin That hatch with their running shoes on are called precocial. You may see one disappearing into the grass orįlattening itself on the ground and freezing. Immediately, you look aroundįor the killdeer babies. Suddenly, and the bird flies away, calling a loud "KILL-DEE" that sounds like a jeer.īeen fooled a time or two by the broken wing display, you don't give theĭeceiving adult killdeer a second glance. Killdeer feels that the young are safe from you, its broken wing heals As you pursue it, the killdeer leads you farther and fartherĪway from its four downy killdeer babies crouching on the ground or half Struggling to keep its balance, the killdeer manages to stay one stepĪhead of you. The bird, it almost lets you reach out and pick it up. If your instinct to rescue the killdeer overcomes you, and you try to catch In front of you, as if it can barely walk, let alone fly. See an adult killdeer in gravel, such as along a rocky railroad easement, or on a dirt road.Īs you approach, the killdeer may suddenly develop a broken wing. Out for killdeer over the next couple of months, on the chance of glimpsing Tottery and clumsy on their overly-long legs. Although theyĪre lively right away, just-hatched killdeer are like new fawns, a bit That's what the killdeer chick at left is doing.Ĭan't fly, and they need their killdeer parents for protection and guidance,īut they are a lot closer to independence than most baby birds.įluffy killdeer chicks is one of the pleasures of summer. Parents and searching the ground for something to eat. ![]() They hatch with their eyes open, and as soonĪs their downy feathers dry, they start scurrying about, following their
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