We’re used to seeing curlews defend their nests from aerial predators while we’re out doing surveys, but yesterday Ben, one of our all-star curlew technicians, witnessed some behavior we’ve never seen before when a ground predator showed up:
Story by Ben Wright
While out nest searching today, I watched a pair of curlews land next to each other in the distance. At this point in the season we get excited anytime we find a female, because they are very hard to locate once the incubation period begins and they sit nearly invisible on the nest for virtually all the daylight hours.
Right after the pair landed, a coyote ran toward them from the west. As the coyote came over the hill, the male curlew took off and flew across the draw to the east of him. The coyote stopped a few feet from the female but watched where the male flew to. The male landed near the bottom of the east side of the draw, seemingly trying to lure the predator away.
After landing he began making an unusual chirping call I had never heard before, but one that sounded very similar to the call curlews use when they are with their chicks. As soon as the male began to call, the coyote immediately ran in his direction. It seemed that the coyote knew that that noise should mean there would be some curlew chicks nearby! The coyote disappeared in what seemed like a pursuit of some chicks and the male successfully distracted the predator from discovering the nest. Shortly after the coyote left, the female made her way over the hill to her nest, revealing its location to me. What really amazed me was to realize that the coyote had passed within meters of their nest! This pair’s nest makes the 6th for the 2014 season so far so stay tuned for more curlew updates in the next few weeks!
