Meet the Deets

I found a new killdeer couple yesterday while making my rounds on the lake. There are plans to start construction on some road damage near San Carlos bay, so I wanted to check on 4th male, near the "fireworks" area before they blocked off the road to that area and I would have to drive around to the other side.

There were tons of finches all over this area and their loud "mewing" almost totally masked the killdeers screaming at the fishermen on the lakeshore. But, I was able to find these birds and, from their flying back and forth across the bay, could tell what the male's territorial boundaries are.

I am calling the male M8 and the female F4 because I discovered a new female earlier in the day that I am calling F3. But, I call them the Deets because they are the noisiest couple on the lake. They won't stop deeting! I think they're not used to people. They may be totally new to the area, attracted by the lower water levels leaving more wide open lake shore with lots of rocks. If they were to lay eggs now, they would have a good chance of hatching them before the water level goes back up to previous levels.

I sure hope no one steps on any of the nests on the lakeshore while fishing. These birds like to lay eggs right where people walk.

Mr. Deet on left, Mrs. Deet on right

Mrs. Deet is actually pretty calm and more quiet than her noisy mate. Though not always.

I thought they might have been M2 and a new female, F3, whom I had seen in M2's territory earlier. I will tell that whole story later on. But, I looked at the photos very carefully and these look and behave like two entirely different birds and doubt that they're any of the other known males or females on the lake who have migrated to a new area.