Finding Killdeer Nests: Two Methods

As part of my on-going effort to become more familiar with the behavior of the birds of Eliza Howell Park, I pay special attention to their breeding habits. Last week I commented on my so-far unsuccessful attempts to locate a Wood Duck nesting cavity. Since then, Killdeer, another of the March arrivals, has made its annual appearance.

Photo by Margaret Weber

I have had more success in locating Killdeer nests, though this is also a big challenge. Killdeer nest on the open ground, in a small depression with no nest structure. The nesting birds are so well camouflaged that they can only be seen when they move. And, like Wood Ducks, the young leave the nest immediately after hatching, so there is no feeding activity to help one locate the nest.

Killdeer nest very early in the year, before the ground plants grow. In each of the areas shown in this picture, I was able to locate a Killdeer nest, in three different years.

I found this nest (next picture) by using the nest-hunting method I usually employ for Killdeer:

1. paying careful attention to the area of the field where a pair of Killdeer is “hanging out” in late March/early April;
2. watching them, from a distance, to try to find the location where one of the pair settles down on the ground, a possible nest;
3. trying to fix that location in my mind (this is difficult because an open field provides very few markers to go by);
4. going to the location when the birds are absent to try to get a close-up look (even when I know there probably is a nest there, it remains difficult to actually spot it).

This strategy takes a lot of time and patience, but it often works.

Nest-finding method # 2 is not really a method at all. I refer to it as serendipity, making the discovery more or less by accident, by being in the right place at the right time.

Two years ago I was walking across the field in April with a park visitor, heading toward an area where I had been observing Killdeer. All of a sudden, a Killdeer few out from three feet in front of us. Looking down, I saw that we had almost stepped on a nest, at least 50 yards from the area I thought might be their nesting site.

After a quick picture, we left the area so that incubation could resume.

Killdeer nest regularly in Eliza Howell, but, as far as I can determine, only one or two pair a year. They nest early and usually in the area of the park that is mowed. In some years, I am concerned that the eggs might not hatch before mowing begins.

Killdeer probably have another brood later in the nesting season, but I have not yet located a nest after April.

Photo by Margaret Weber

The pair that arrived within the last few days has already been engaged in mating activity; they are likely to nest soon.

And I have started my watching, noting that they seem to be favoring an area that has the kind of gravelly ground that Killdeer often like for their nests. I will be back, multiple times.

And, if my patient watching doesn’t confirm a nest, maybe I will discover one by method # 2?

Thinking April during Winter Walks

I enjoy nature walks in the winter in Eliza Howell Park, especially when there is snow on the ground, but for 2-3 months the seasonal changes are minimal. Plants and many animals are dormant and the number of birds present is the lowest of any time during the year. Nature’s year begins later in the calendar year in Detroit, in March rather than in January.

So, during my quiet winter walks, I sometimes find myself thinking ahead and anticipating some of the special times that will be coming later this year, some of the best times to visit the park to observe, and perhaps to photograph, annual natural phenomena.

The first “don’t miss” days marked on my calendar are late April. (There will be a public nature walk on Saturday, April 27, at 10 a.m.)

In late April, the earliest of the summer breeding birds will have returned from their winter grounds and, like this male Red-winged Blackbird, will be claiming their territories and proclaiming their interest in a mate.

     Photo by Margaret Weber

Sometime in the second half of April (the exact time is temperature dependent), American Toads will return to their breeding pond in EHP and spend a couple of days and nights in loud calling and in mating / egg-laying. In 2018, the weather was too warm in May and the pond dried up before the tadpoles were fully developed, so it will be especially interesting to see what happens this year.

     Photo by Margaret Weber

Late April is also the beginning of the blooming wildflower season in the park, with a variety of small species found along the paths in the woods. The timing of this is also weather dependent, but on the basis of my experience over the last decade, the last week in April is usually a good time to see them. This collage of Violets is made up of pictures taken in 2018.

The Mayapple does not usually bloom as early as April in Eliza Howell, but it is fascinating to observe how it emerges. There are several patches where its progress can be observed in the late days of April.

Of the approximately 30 butterfly species that can be seen annually in Eliza Howell, the first ones usually show up in late April. The tiny Spring Azure, pictured with the wings up here, is a lovely blue when the wings are open.

April is also the month when the earliest bird nests can be found (the Red-tailed Hawk nest earlier). Most song birds build their nests later (the annual Detroit Audubon field trip to Eliza Howell to observe nesting bids is in early June), but I often find a couple by late April.

These pictures were taken in April, 2018. The one on the left, a nest on the ground, is Killdeer. The one on the right, in a shrub, is Northern Cardinal.

My walks continue all winter and I usually find something noteworthy each time, but the changes from one week to the next are nothing now like they are when spring has fully arrived. To avoid missing special developments – such as first butterflies, first wildflowers, first bird nests – it’s time to mark the calendar.

Finding Nesting Birds in EHP: 2018 Report

Each year since 2010, I keep a record of the bird species that I observe nesting in Eliza Howell Park. As of July 1, I have seen 22 different species actively nesting in the park this year. It is possible that I will still add to the number (last year I found American Goldfinches, a late-nesting species, building nests in July), but this seems like a good time to report.

This list is only of those species whose nests I actually find, and does not include those I only see carrying food for their young or feeding fledglings; I need to actually find the nest. The total number of species over the 9 years is 34.

At the bottom, I list the 22 species. The pictures, all taken in 2018 in EHP, provide a few examples of experiencing the nests.

The latest found is also one that I have not found in the park prior to this year – Red-eyed Vireo. The nest, built the last week of June, is likely the second brood for this pair.

Photo by Margaret Weber

Note how the vireo has twisted its body around to look at us, without getting off the eggs.

Much earlier in the nesting season I came across this ground nest of a Killdeer. It is not much of a nest in terms of construction, but is wonderfully camouflaged. (For more on this, see my April 24 post, “Killdeer: A Story of Nest and Eggs.”)

Normally, I find a nest only when the bird’s behavior leads me to it; it is unusual to find nests by simply looking for nests. But, occasionally, I see a nest before I see the bird. In April, when shrubs were still free of leaves, I saw this nest.

Revisiting it, I found a female Northern Cardinal incubating. One day, when she was absent, I took a picture of the inside.

Most birds that nest in Eliza Howell are quite featherless and helpless when they first hatch (Killdeer, duck, and goose hatchlings are the only exceptions). American Robins are the most common nesting species in Eliza Howell and I stole a very quick picture of the inside of one nest shortly after hatching.

The Blue Jays being fed below are much further developed.

Photo by Margaret Weber

I wrote a couple weeks ago about watching a pair of Mourning Doves building a nest (posted June 13). At last look, incubation continues. This is probably the male on the eggs. I cannot tell that from observation, but those who study Mourning Doves report that the male usually takes the day shift and the female the night shift.

Photo by Margaret Weber

——-

Nests found in 2018          (** = nest in tree cavity)

• Red-tailed Hawk
• Killdeer
• Mourning Dove
• Rock Pigeon
• Red-bellied Woodpecker**
• Northern Flicker**
• Downy Woodpecker **
• Barn Swallow
• Tree Swallow**
• Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
• Eastern Phoebe
• Eastern Kingbird
• Blue Jay
• American Robin
• Eastern Bluebird (bird box)
• Red-eyed Vireo
• Yellow Warbler
• European Starling **
• Common Grackle
• Baltimore Oriole
• Orchard Oriole
• Northern Cardinal

Finding nesting birds is definitely a highlight of my spring and early summer. Thanks to Detroit Audubon field trips, every June since 2011 I have had the opportunity to share some of this excitement with others.

Killdeer: A Story of Nest and Eggs

Killdeer usually return to Eliza Howell Park in early March; this year I had my first sighting on March 9. Typically, there are a few in the park from March till late Summer or early Fall.

Killdeer are plovers, a type of shorebird, but they are often found in open areas some distance from water. In EHP, they are most commonly seen in the fields within the road loop

Photo by Margaret Weber

Killdeer are early nester. In the years that I find a nest, it is in April. On April 18 this year, while walking through the field with a companion, we saw a Killdeer run slowly away from our path. Stopping to get a better look at the bird, we watched as it did its broken-wing act. This effort to try to get us to follow it rather than continue where we were headed suggested that we were close to the nest.

I looked down in the direction we had been walking and there, three feet ahead, was the nest.

Killdeer lay their eggs (almost always 4) in a shallow depression in the ground, where they incubate unprotected from spring rains, cold, and occasional snow. There is no structure to stand out and the egg coloring makes them well camouflaged. I am sure that I have walked right past Killdeer nests quite a number of times without knowing it.

For the size of the bird (a Killdeer is very slightly larger than an American Robin), the eggs are large, about 70% larger than those of Robins. The egg size is important. The larger eggs contain more nutrition and make possible more extensive development before hatching.

Bird hatchlings are usually described as either “altricial” or “precocial.” Most small birds that nest in Eliza Howell are quite naked and helpless when first hatched and are totally dependent on being care for in the nest (altricial). A Killdeer is precocial, has fluffy feathers when it hatches and can walk away from the nest on the first day and start eating on its own (think precocious).

Greater development in the shell takes longer, however, and the newly hatched Killdeer is about the same “age” as a robin 12 days after hatching. Killdeer eggs are incubated 24 – 26 days and Robin eggs 11- 14 days.

The young Killdeer chicks will not be out in the ground nest helpless after hatching; once hatched, their parents can lead them to other hiding places. Until then, the eggs are at some risk from predators, from being stepped on, and, perhaps, from lawn mowers. I don’t know how long this Killdeer pair has been incubating so far, but hatch date is probably be a couple weeks away yet.