Killdeer
Charadrius vociferus
Killdeer are open-country plovers found on mudflats, pastures, gravel lots, shorelines, and fields across much of North America. They feed by running in short bursts and stopping to pick insects, worms, small crustaceans, and other invertebrates from the ground. Adults are famous for their loud calls and for the broken-wing display, luring predators away from eggs or chicks by pretending to be injured. Unlike many shorebirds, they often nest far from water, scraping a shallow nest directly into bare ground or gravel.
- Type
- Wing
- Conservation status
- NT
Growth chain
- Killdeer Chick
- Killdeer