304 Bird - Lore 



northeastern boundary of New Jersey.) Last year the first Killdeer's nest 

 that I know of was found on a neighboring farm. 



All this spring we noticed the Killdeers calling in our meadow and around 

 the fields. For a while we kept one of our horses grazing in a large field before 

 it was plowed. One day the Killdeer became frantic, screaming 'Kill-dee-er, 

 Kill-deer' right before him. It was easy to guess that they must have a nest 

 near by. When the horse went away, they stopped calling. Soon we found the 

 bird leading the calf away. She ran a few steps, then fell down on the ground, 

 flapping her little brown and white wings as if wounded. The calf followed and 

 smelled her to see what she was. The Killdeer jumped up and pecked the 

 calf's nose, then ran off again. 



The next day, my mother saw the bird right between the horse's feet, 

 lying still, but screaming as loudly as it could. She decided the nest must be 

 there, so she went to the spot. The Killdeers, unlike the friendly Catbirds 

 and Robins that nest near our house, were more afraid of her than of the horse. 

 They screamed louder and louder as my mother approached, and tried their 

 best to attract her away. She drove the horse away and found the nest. 



The nest consisted of a shallow depression in the ground, with a few roots 

 and dry, brown weeds. There were four eggs, arranged with the points toward 

 the center. The eggs were a rather muddy light gray, with thick speckles and 

 scrawls of a dark, greenish brown. It was April 12, 1922, when we found the 

 nest and the eggs did not hatch until May 6. 



The young were very funny little creatures, that matched their surroundings 

 so well that they could hardly be seen. About four hours after the first egg 

 hatched, they had all left the nest. The next afternoon, we found themi 

 down in the swamp. They looked somewhat like little Quail except that their 

 legs were much longer. Their shape and manner of walking reminded me of 

 young Sandpipers. When we found them, they were following their mother 

 just as a brood of chicks follows the hen. The mother pulled up worms, and 

 got other things for them to eat. Already they had learned to hide. When- 

 ever anyone approached, the old bird screamed a shrill 'Ee-ee!' Immediately 

 the young would scatter and each would settle down beside a stone. It was 

 practically impossible to see them unless they moved. 



We saw them quite often afterward in the meadow. The other day, my 

 father saw a flock of eight. Evidently they had been successful in raising the 

 whole brood in spite of Hawks, Crows, and other dangers. I cannot under- 

 stand how they escaped, for, in spite of every precaution, we lost many chicks 

 and little goslings. Now, one of our neighbors says he has found another 

 flock of little Killdeers. 



The Killdeer is very different in character from most of the birds that 

 build near our home. He is not nearly so friendly, for one thing. We have 

 nests of the Baltimore Oriole, the Catbird, the House Wren, the Robin, the 

 Song Sparrow, the Yellow Warbler, the Least Flycatcher, the Barn Swallow, 



