Thursday, October 30, 2014

Creature Feature #376: Killdeer

The Killdeer is a species of plover widespread across the Western Hemisphere, migrating to the northern reaches in summer and spending his winters in Central America. Although technically a shorebird, he can live far inland (we saw one in Yellowstone, on the Mammoth hot springs). He forages on mudflats and fields, feeding on worms and other invertebrates. Chicks are precocial and resemble their parents in colouration. If danger threatens, the adult birds will feign injury: dragging their wing, flapping and peeping in distress as they attempt to draw the predator away. As soon as the predator is safely away from the chicks, the bird will make a sudden recovery.

No comments: