Killdeer attacks family on Mothers' Day

Reee kee kee kee kee. The scream was like a chickadee gone mad or a pileated woodpecker on steroids.

We had stopped at Bella Rose Winery after visiting Stonehaven Nature preserve. The parking lot was fuller than it had been any time this spring so far.

We scanned the treetops for the answer as it got louder and more furious. An aggrieved mother on Mothers’ Day. Then we looked down.

It was a killdeer in full, glorious tantrum defending its nest. That’s how I know the lot was fuller than it had been at any time this spring.

The little plover had scratched out a nest in the parking lot gravel and deposited 4 eggs she was fiercely guarding. When she sat down again you could not see her.

Killdeer are one of the first migrants to return in spring, just like redwinged blackbirds. Robins as a sign of spring are a myth, at least in Niagara Falls, because they overwinter here.

When they aren’t excited and they first return in spring you can hear them calling “killdeer, killdeer, killdeer” as they soar over suburban parking lots.

After we took some photos of our new friend, I crossed the parking lot and grabbed the orange cone blocking entrance to the vineyard and relocated it to protect her lair. Then I went inside and told Amanda who manages the place what we had done.

That’s how I know it was their busiest day so far. That end of the lot was so empty this spring a bird could build a nest on the ground and hardly be disturbed.