To be sure, northern lapwings are strange birds. They lay their eggs on the ground, in the middle of a path, if need be, and after the chicks hatch their main strategy of defense is to abandon them and fly away screaming, hoping to divert the intruder. In the Netherlands collecting lapwings eggs had developed into a macabre springtime tradition, thankfully prohibited by law nowadays (except in the province of Friesland). The impact of human encroachment is nonetheless responsible for the dramatic decline of this bird in the last years.
A male Northern lapwing displaying his long crest and black crown. Of the more than 20 species of lapwings only three have a crest.
