It’s breeding season here for the Masked Lapwing plovers, the fuckers.
Now I am the first to admit that the chicks are THE most adorable wee critters ever, toddling around on the grass with their parents flying overhead to keep the predators away.
But you avian stupid dudes, I just wanted to walk the five, yes FIVE steps to my neighbours place for a Sippers Session (a glass of wine in the afternoon sun) and the bastards made me spill my glass of chardonnay! I wasn’t going to step on your babies, fuck, I couldn’t even SEE them. STOP STOOPING ME!
Next time you get horny and have sprogs, can you do it somewhere else? Pretty please?
He was getting dive bombed by the parents of baby birds on the ground. He had a glass of wine in hand while walking next door to the neighbors, and spilled it.
They should make juice boxes with wine instead of juice for this occasion.
Well, they kinda do, just the boxes are a little over one portion and drinking a whole one would increase your odds of stepping on a baby plover substantially, and would probably justify the adult bird response.
For anyone not familiar with Masked Lapwings, they’re not just birds, they’re feathery balls of hormonal fury with spikes on their wings.
Those 500ml boxes are great to keep around for cooking, and the leftovers fit neatly in the fridge for the next time you need some wine. But they are a bit large for “sipping some wine in the afternoon sun”.
Kambucta is Aussie, IIRC; I was kind of referring to the existence of goon.
Though I have seen someone drink a full 4l box of the stuff and still be standing at the end, I would not want to be a tiny squishy baby plover anywhere in the vicinity.
Oh, we have huge boxes of wine here, too. They are great for taking on vacation to the lake, because they are easy to pack. But i buy the little 500ml boxes all the time, so that’s what i thought of.
Historically, the eggs of certain plover species (such as the Northern Lapwing or European golden plover) were considered a high-end luxury delicacy in Europe, harvested and served at formal society events.
This species is far more likely to do a broken wing display to try to divert the attention of a predator from their offspring than to mob the putative predator. Even if they did divebomb me I’d feel honored if they did.
As I mentioned in the OP, my journey was a total of five steps, on concrete, to my neighbours unit. No little chicks on the path, apparently they were a good 30’ away on the lawns and out of my field of vision.
It could have been diversionary. They do pretend to defend places without the chicks, and you might have been walking in a direction that made them nervous.
They are great for taking on vacation to the lake, because they are easy to pack. But i buy the little 500ml boxes all the time, so that’s what i thought of.
