Day 5, chicks' voices getting louder

Possibly the last photo I will be able to take for a while. This is the largest chick, possibly a female

When I arrived, dad killdeer was over in his M2 area eating flies. He complained at me when I walked up to look at the ducks before he flew back over to where his family was at. I noticed that grackles were spending a lot of time in that area and I thought, at one time, that they were attacking a chick, but it might be one of the parents attacking the grackles. The grackles were not in the area when I visited a second time.

Today, I only managed to see the largest chick and photograph her. Yes, I said her as it appears that she might be going to be a female, but I probably won't be sure until later, if I see them again. I looked and looked and I thought I heard at least one, possibly two other chicks in the brush the first time I passed by.

A strange female killdeer stopped by and began feeding in the area. She looked like she was going to lay eggs any day now. The parents didn't react to her at first, but one of them did make an aggressive call towards her letting her know that she's not welcome. The strange female continued to feed and I assume she left afterward because she was not there a few hours later.

Strange female, possibly a grown chick or relative responding to the alarm calls the parents made.

The second time I passed by, about mid-day, I did not see any chicks at all, though the parents were obviously reacting to me being there and doing broken wing acts. I thought I heard at least one chick peeping, very loudly, from the brush but I couldn't be sure if it was a chick peeping loudly, or mom peeping softly.

I left the area and came back later and one person said that they heard a chick peeping very loudly in the brush, but when I went to check, I did not find it. But, as I went to leave, dad killdeer got very upset and flew ahead of me, probably thinking that I had taken a chick, so I must have been close.

On the way down the road, I passed by the more protected area and could see and hear dad calling for his chicks at that end. I, and the other person could hear two very loud, distinct responses from two chicks there. Mom was still over where the last chick was heard and continued to call. I assume she found him and directed him over to the protected area as she began to get quiet and made softer calls.

I hope all five got together. I'm sure they're all fine, killdeer are usually good at finding their babies and moving them away.

The chicks are getting better at responding by running and hiding more effectively. Instead of freezing where they're at when I approach, the scatter, usually two in one direction and one in another and hide near rocks or brush. It's nearly impossible for me to find them when they hide under brush. It's good that they're hiding behind rocks, even though they're still pretty accessible and able to be grabbed, but they are less likely to get stepped on by accident.

I am not going to be spending as much time looking for the chicks as I used to do. They hide very well now and as long as I know the parents are still protecting them, at least one is still alive. As they grow, their calls will be louder and, eventually, they will not rush to hide as quickly as they do right now. Or, they will be bigger and more noticeable when they do hide. So, mostly I will be listening for them and if I see them, that will be great, too.

Update on killdeer chicks day 3. Also, 3 new chicks found!

Tiny (the smallest one) waits for dad, who was standing nearby, to warm him up

Day three and I could only find two at a time each time I visited. They scatter, now, when I approach and hide behind rocks. They still freeze when I approach, which may be a problem, but at least they move out of the way when I initially walk up. And, they hide behind or near larger rocks, so, their chances of accidentally getting stepped on is lower.

In the morning, I found two on the shore and I thought I heard a third peeping in the bushes. I photographed the two which seem to be the biggest and the middle sized one.

The middle sized chick

The largest chick who likes to run a lot

Later, when I came back, they had moved into a brushy area and, again, I saw only two in the brush and maybe heard a third hiding in some nearby reeds. I think the two I saw were the biggest and the smallest.

The parents seem to be not as excited with me there, except when I start looking through the brush for their chicks. They also don't like me being on one stretch of land which is actually far, far away from where their chicks are at, but where I can still watch them. When I leave this area, they go out on the road and do broken wing acts. People don't really understand what's going on, though. Hopefully, they won't hurt anyone and I won't get blamed if they do.

Mom checks me out

When M2 was up on the road trying to distract me, he noticed the Cooper's hawk that was perching nearby. It's not unusual to see that hawk there and he was probably not watching the chicks, but M2 attacked him and chased him away.

Three new chicks discovered

Unfamiliar male killdeer in the M6 territory

I found three new chicks in an area where I rarely go, but I was only physically able to get a look at one chick. There were definitely two more as their peeping was really loud and distinct. I am unfamiliar with the parents. They were in a very brushy area that has a steep slope behind it. Except for coyotes in the area, they are very well protected from just about everything that could get them. I won't be attempting to observe them very often because by the time I find a way down to them, they have already scattered into the brush. It's very hard to observe them there because, even though I see the parents go into the brush to attend them, it's hard to actually see them. They appear to be a couple of days older than M1 and F3's chicks as the one I saw is almost double the size of theirs.

One of three chicks in this area hiding in some reeds

Next update is several days away during the weekend when people will be fishing on the shore and picking up trash there, too. I hope that their human evasion techniques will be better by then as they will be almost a week old and 25% grown. I am also hoping that no one hurts them or their parents because of the racket they raise or because they don't understand their behavior.

Hopefully, I will see all three together, but it's unlikely. And, hopefully, there will be happy updates to come.

Update on killdeer chicks, 1.5 days old now

Killdeer chicks this morning

I only saw three killdeer chicks, as I did yesterday, so there may have been only three to begin with. They were being brooded right at the edge of the water. Actually, I think what happened was that they went into freeze mode as I approached as they were already feeding there. The ducks were coming back to that area from being fed, so I thought I should leave the area so that the parents could move the chicks before they got stepped on by the ducks.

When I came back a couple of hours later, I saw a gull with a black, long-legged chick in it's bill, dunking it in the water. I couldn't get him to drop it and he flew off along with a heron and some other scavengers. The parents went crazy as I walked up to that area, so I thought, for sure, that the gulls had actually killed off all the chicks. Someone had also left bread in the area, attracting the scavengers. But, the adult killdeer seemed to enjoy it, too. I never knew that killdeer will eat bread.

Someone said, later, that she saw a small bird chasing attacking a gull somewhere else, so it's possible that it got another bird's chick, possibly one of a swallow or a phoebe. But, I was really upset and wanted to cry until I knew that at least two of the chicks were safe.

Gulls scavenging bread someone left, the brown one was the one with the chick

After sitting and listening, I was able to figure out where the chicks actually were, right where mom and dad left them, all three. When they stay hidden where mom and dad left them, they do not call out and stay really still and quiet. So, I found them, in the mud, behind some rocks. I went away and came back to check on them one more time before I left and found that they had already left and ran into the brush. Not worth looking for them in there as I knew they were OK and probably in separate areas. I heard them calling back to mom and dad's call. Very cute! Little peeps in response to the very noisy parents.

The three chicks were hiding 50 feet away. I moved a couple pebbles to get a clearer shot

Some fisherman walked by right where the chicks were laying in the mud a few minutes before. I was glad that they had moved as they might have gotten stepped on. Their instinct to stay immobile is a problem, especially when people are walking around the area. Hopefully, people will look and see where they're stepping and I won't be seeing a dead chick when I check on them tomorrow morning. A lot of the fisherman have been avoiding that area because of the screaming parents and that might be a good thing. But, some just ignore them.

More updates tomorrow, I hope some happy ones.

M1 and F3 chick slideshow

Here is a Youtube slideshow I did on the new killdeer family. I will try to keep up with them, but already they are very elusive. Their parents make a lot of noise and draw a lot of attention. I could get "yelled at" by someone because of it. But, enjoy the slideshow, part of the right side was cut off due to the formatting of this page. For the full video, please visit the link that says "here":

Here

M1 and F3 had chicks!

Running Chick at Lake Murray

I went to check on the aftermath that the 4th of July fireworks had on the birds at the lake. When I arrived, I found M1, M2 and both their mates missing. M2 has been missing for over a week and I assumed he was flying back and forth from Mission Trails where his mate was. But, I was wrong.

I went and checked on what I assumed was Little Male's breeding area as I could hear two killdeer screaming at people fishing on the shore. When I arrived there, I saw an adult killdeer and a chick running under the brush. The adults appeared to be M2 and possibly his mate, F3 whom I had witness breeding June 7th. I immediately searched for the chick, much to the dismay of the two adults there, but found none. So, I waited and listened. Every time the two adults would call, I would hear responses from four different directions. With even more patience, I saw both parents brood three separate chicks. I managed to get up and find the chicks in the locations that the adults were seen brooding them.

The chicks stayed very, very still and I was able to move branches around them to get a photo of the three. They appeared to be about ten to twelve hours old, which meant that they were born right in the middle of the 4th of July fireworks celebrations. I got my photos and backed off, hoping to find the fourth. People were beginning to notice all the noise. I hope I wasn't waking people up in the houses, but I think they were too far away to notice. I decided to leave them alone and come back later.

An hour or so later, I came back and the parents were still protective, but I saw no chicks at all. I went around to the bushes to see how the parents would react, but they didn't seem really excited and I saw no chicks. Then, I saw a lone chick get up and run several yards away and disappear. I didn't find any other chicks. I walked over to where the chick used to be and the parents went nuts, but still no other chicks. When the adults made their calls, I also heard no responses, possibly because they weren't in need of being kept warm at that time.

I will be posting a movie-slideshow later on. I may not be able to see these chicks again because, at twelve or thirteen hours old, they were already very adept at hiding and running.


Update on other killdeers:

Little Male and his mate was nowhere to be seen. However, I thought I saw a third adult stop by the area where M2 and F3 were raising their chicks, but it didn't stay. It's possible that was Little Male and he may be nesting nearby.

M4 was not at his home, but several killdeers were heard across a small bay that could have been him and the two ballpark killdeers who were absent from the ballpark when I first arrived. The male arrived back on the field as I was leaving. M4's territory was ground zero for the fireworks yesterday. I expect that he will be back in his territory within the next few days. I also expect to see Little Male sometime in the next week either at a nest or on his beach.

The Killdeers Strike Back

Crows started getting into large groups in response to the invasion of the grackles at Lake Murray

Yesterday was the last day I could visit the lake before the 4th of July. I wanted to check to see if any nests were in danger so that I could possibly report them to park officials to see if anything could be done to protect them before the holiday. During the 4th of July, certain areas of the lakeshore is packed with people and their lawnchairs. There are areas that will be so full of people that there will be no open spaces at all. That would mean that any killdeers nests would be destroyed. But, I didn't find any killdeers, or any other birds, in danger of having trampled nests.

M4 lives in the area where the fireworks will actually be shot off. I checked on him and found Bo to be back in the area. I haven't seen her in some time, but M4 always seemed to be around. There were also two other killdeer that were only about 3/4 the size of Bo and M4 which may indicate that they are about 4 to 6 weeks old. They were about the size of "Little Male" when I first encountered him. One was a male and one was a female. M4 didn't seem to have any problem with these two sharing the area and made no aggressive moves towards them. In fact, when M4 got really annoyed by me, he left the area only to be followed by the two smaller ones, who were very nervous of people. Bo stayed behind and watched me.

M4 (Left) and Bo (center right)

The "young" couple

M4 on the left, Bo on the right, and young killdeer in the middle

Could they possibly be his offspring?

In the baseball field, all seemed fine, at first. The male and female were there, but the gate was locked, so I couldn't go see them up close. I shot some photos of them over a low fence on one side and left.

Ballpark female. Looks a lot like F3, but not exactly

Ballpark male

After I had finished visiting M4 and he and the other two flew away (I assume to the other side of his territory), I heard some territorial fighting on the ballpark. I went over there to check and accidentally bothered 5 crows that were eating some food outside the ballpark fence and they flew to near where the killdeer were "arguing".

At this point, I couldn't use my camera as to get close enough to do so would have changed the circumstances and behavior of the parties involved. Also, there was a high chain-link fence from where I was watching and the photos wouldn't have come out well. I could have gone over to the other side with the shorter fence, but that may have caused a distraction to the killdeer and they could have gotten hurt.

At first, the killdeer went on with their displays and the crows just stood by and watched. I don't know if the two intruders were the young killdeer I just saw or two other ones. They looked fully grown, so they were probably different. I assume they were a male or a female. The resident male displayed with his dips and flashing tail feathers. The male killdeer were very vocal with their kill-dee singing while the females stood nearby.

Crows don't like noisy killdeer so while the killdeer was distracted with their fighting, the crows started acting like they were going to grab them by wobbely flying over, slowing down, and just barely missing (crows are mostly scavengers and do not hunt, so they're not equipped to pounce on prey like a hawk. Or, they could have been doing this on purpose to scare the killdeer or chase them away).

Of course, the killdeer just flew out of the way and continued on with their territorial dispute. But, the crows didn't give up and one after one, they continued to make attacks at the killdeer. One of the intruders left, the other was chased around pretty good, but I didn't see him leave (I did check the field as much as I could and didn't see any hurt of dead killdeer, so he/she must have left). One crow chased the resident male for a long time, but the killdeer always stayed a few feet in front of him.

There was nothing I could do about this and I feared that the killdeer were going to get killed by these large birds. But, things started to change. The male killdeer began charging the crows, enticing them to chase him, to which they did, but could not out-fly or out-maneuver the killdeer (I hear that killdeer can cruise for 40MPH all day long during their migrations).

Then, I saw both the male and the female do broken wing acts, each on one side of the group of crows. When the crows took the bait, they flew away and the killdeer began to dive-bomb them one after the other. They were like buzzing bees, zooming around the heads of all five crows. The crows tried to fight back and I was afraid the killdeer were going to get hurt, but they were fine in the end. When they weren't dive-bombing, they were on the ground screaming their hearts out.

Ballpark male beginning to do a broken wing act

Finally, the crows decided that it wasn't any fun anymore and three of them left. They called the other two away, but they came back and sat on top of the fence, probably wondering why the killdeer were so aggressive and possibly waiting for a chick to come out of hiding (no chicks or eggs in the area, though). I came over and "bothered" those crows away and they sat in a nearby tree.

I don't know if the crows came back after I was gone to try again. Crows are extremely smart, especially when it comes to finding food, but I think they mostly harass or hurt other birds for entertainment. They like to think that all the other birds and small animals are afraid of them and that they're the bosses of the bird world. I don't how they are in regards to retaliation. I will check on these birds Monday. They may actually not be there because of the fireworks and ballgames this weekend.

I don't know what these killdeer think they're protecting, but they are determined to protect it. Maybe they laid eggs that disappeared, but they're still in egg protecting mode.

Birds Playing Games

I have been hearing killdeer sounds coming from one of the ballfields for about a week, but never saw the birds. Well, yesterday, I was determined to find them and went all around there looking for them. There appeared to be two of them, a male and a female. The female was playing "I'm not nesting there, I'm nesting here" with me, a game usually played by males. I don't think I've seen her before, but she does look a little familiar.

Female

The male has two very distinctive white feathers on his back. I definitely haven't seen him before. He also appears to have an injury around the cloaca, but that could be something related to mating.

Male with white patches on his back

But, what was really weird is that they seemed to be purposely teasing the squirrels in one area. They were doing a full-blown broken wing act around them, not the red-tail flashing that Little Male did with his mate yesterday. And, the squirrels were actually chasing them. But, the killdeer only ran away and not flew. I would never think a squirrel would attack a wounded bird, though I wouldn't put past them eating some eggs or chicks. It could be that the squirrel was annoyed.

"Teasing" the squirrels

I couldn't see what the squirrel was eating, but it didn't look like eggs or chicks. I walked carefully around there, even looked outside the fence area nearby and saw no eggs or chicks anywhere. The ballpark is heavily used this time of year and any nest laid inside the fenced area will be destroyed. So, I'm hoping they don't lay eggs there, but I think that they're planning to and have it set in their head that the nest is there. That could be why they were doing the broken wing act.

In another area, the ducklings that I have named the "Fish Food Ducklings" because they spent their earliest days surrounded by huge fish, possibly trying to eat them, were having their own issue. They're big now at 3 1/2 weeks old. There's a man who comes around and feeds the water birds and these ducklings try to share a spot with some American coots. But, coots are territorial and constantly chase and harass the ducklings and the mother duck. But, I think the baby coots think this is all a game. They're having fun chasing everyone around, ducklings or other birds.

Gonna get cooties!

You guys gotta leave or you're gonna get cooties