Smart little actress…

The beautiful little bird pictured today does not have any famous quotes associated with it, yet there should be!  These amazing little “ordinary” bird moms are the Academy Award winners of the bird world due to their faithful, and somewhat desperate, performance for predators.

You see, killdeer nest in very open areas where they simply scratch stony ground to create a “nest” where their eggs are laid. Though the eggs are well camouflaged to look like little speckled rocks, they are pretty much in the open. So, sometimes a predator will wander near and the momma killdeer will “act out”. She immediately moves away from her nest to lure the predator away from the eggs. She runs just a little ways, then stops and looks back. Then she will run a bit more and stop and look back. If the predator still isn’t following, she pulls out all the stops and feigns a broken wing, running while apparently dragging her wing. It’s an acting performance that is a matter of life and death for her babies. 

So when you see this little bird running parallel to you or across a path, know that you are seeing an Academy Award winning performance. Applaud the little momma but don’t go looking for her nest as the last thing that is needed is to draw unwanted attention from nearby predators. Smile, knowing that you’ve just seen love in ACTion!