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Project Noah Nature School
Charadrius alexandrinus
Female sitting on the nest still, but look very closely - the first chick has hatched and is standing on the left side and moves slowly round to the front by the fourth picture.
Coastal marshes
Spotted on Apr 21, 2012
Submitted on Apr 22, 2012
2 Comments
What I found amazing was that 3 days later a pair of Common Terns had taken over the nest! I did some research and found that Kentish Plover chicks leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching and feed themselves with guidance from the parents for a week, then one parent leaves to find another partner with the other one carrying on alone for a while. Sometimes the male leaves first, other times the female. The chicks are then looked after by non-breeding adults!
Nice spotting - hard to see it as it blends in so very well with its surroundings.