Help our Spur-winged Lapwing Chicks

Recently several community members have mentioned seeing forlorn Spur-winged Lapwing chicks on the side of the road. What should you do in this case?

Spur-winged Lapwing make a simple scrape on a bare piece of land in sand or amongst pebbles. Here their eggs are very well camouflaged from predators. When the chicks hatch the young birds sometimes wander dropping from the curb onto the road itself. Often they are unable to climb back to safety. This scenario seem particularly common on the road out to the main road on the way to the King Abdullah Monument.

In this case the best thing to do is lift the chick back on to the barren land, away from the road and leave them there. Do this as quickly as you can. If you handle them for too long your scent goes onto the baby and then the parents may not then accept them back. If you handle them for just a few seconds the parent birds will take them back and continue to care for them.

Spur-winged Lapwings defend their young boldly. They dive down at intruders trying to scare them away. They do this to humans as well as other predators. The mothers may also try to maneuver you away from the nest area by making out they have a bad wing and walking away from the nest hoping you will follow. At KAUST they seem particularly aggressive, probably because of the number of Common Mynas in the area, which will happily steal the eggs or kill the chicks and eat them.

So if you see the young birds, give them a helping hand to a safe place and they should soon return to the safety of their families.

Visit biodiversity section of Health, Safety & Environment Department website for additional information related to KAUST birds.