158 
KILDEER PLOVER. 
Nothing can exceed the alarm and anxiety of these birds 
during the breeding season. Their cries of kildeer, kildeer, as 
they winnow the air over head, dive and course around you, or 
run along the ground counterfeiting lameness, are shrill and in- 
cessant. The moment they see a person approach, they fly or 
run to attack him with their harassing clamour, continuing it 
over so wide an extent of ground, that they puzzle the pursuer 
as to the particular spot where the nest or young are concealed; 
very much resembling, in this respect, the Lapwing of Europe. 
During the evening, and long after dusk, particularly in moon- 
light, their cries are frequently heard with equal violence, both 
in the Spring and Fall. From this circumstance, and their fly- 
ing about both after dusk, and before dawn, it appears probable 
that they see better at such times than most of their tribe. They 
are known to feed much on worms, and many of these rise to 
the surface during the night. The prowling of Owls, may also 
alarm their fears for their young at those hours; but whatever 
may be the cause, the facts are so. 
The Kildeer is more abundant in the southern states in win- 
ter than in summer. Among the rice fields, and even around 
the planters’ yards in South Carolina, I observed them very 
numerous, in the months of February and March. There the 
negro boys frequently practise the barbarous mode of catch- 
ing them with a line, at the extremity of which is a crooked 
pin, with a worm on it. Their flight is something like that of 
the Tern, but more vigorous; and they sometimes rise to a great 
height in the air. They are fond of wading in pools of water; 
and frequently bathe themselves during the summer. They 
usually stand erect on their legs, and run or walk with the body 
in a stiff horizontal position; they run with great swiftness, and 
are also strong and vigorous in the wings. Their flesh is eaten 
by some, but is not in general esteem, though others say, that 
in the Fall, when they become very fat, it is excellent. 
During the extreme droughts of summer, these birds resort 
to the gravelly channel of brooks and shallow streams, where 
they can wade about in search of aquatic insects. At the close 
