Sandhill Crane vs. Killdeer
In the real world, it would be the Killdeer’s guile against the crane’s height and massive wingspan. The Killdeer’s broken wing display has been distracting avian predators and people for eons. If a crane were to encroach on one of those perfectly camouflaged Killdeer nests, an adult would be creating a racket and limping around somewhere nearby.
Killdeer are our most common plovers and a familiar sight at most any golf course, airport, parking lot or ballfield. They stand out for their handsome appearance and precocial young that leave the nest and scurry around right away.
This is a tough first-round matchup, though, and cranes are mostly beloved.
Pick: Sandhill Crane
Play along with Indiana Audubon’s March Migration Madness here.
just watched a sandhill crane, perhaps a juvenile, pick up a little kildeer - maybe four weeks old - who should've known enough by now to run or fly our of the crane's way. Very disturbing, as I watched these killdeer hatch.