“The Nest Site”

A shorebird you can see without going to the beach, Killdeer are graceful plovers common to lawns, golf courses, athletic fields, and parking lots. These tawny birds run across the ground in spurts, stopping with a jolt every so often to check their progress, or to see if they’ve startled up any insect prey. Their voice, a far-carrying, excited kill-deer, is a common sound even after dark, often given in flight as the bird circles overhead on slender wings. Although I carved this piece a while back, I was inspired by seeing killdeer raise a family this summer near my girlfriend’s house. Consequently, I added a nest and grasses to complete the story.