Pics to go: Killer Killdeer
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This is a Killdeer. They're pretty common in the southern part of the U.S. Even if you've never seen one, you've probably heard it.
Threat level: If you look close, you can see she's protecting four or five eggs. Strangely, this bird nests on the ground, in the open, and uses camo as its defense against predators. Sometimes they will fake an injury to lead a predator away from the nest.
- This one nested in a gravel parking lot between 8th Street Market and The Momentary in Bentonville. Instinctual predators don't include cars, apparently.
Yes, but: Someone — The Momentary and 8th Street Market didn't know who — built a stone ring around her nest, then ringed that with safety-orange pylons and erected a makeshift blockade.
The bottom line: It's nice to live in a community where someone is willing to take the time and effort to do something like this.