The bird that performs a “broken wing” act to lure predators away from its nest is the killdeer.
The killdeer is a North American plover that often nests in exposed places such as fields, gravel lots, shorelines, and even rooftops. Because its shallow ground nests are difficult to hide, the adult relies on distraction displays when a predator or person approaches. It moves away from the nest, calls loudly, droops and quivers its wings, lowers its tail, and behaves as though it is injured.
The performance is designed to make the intruder follow the apparently vulnerable adult rather than investigate the eggs or chicks. Once the threat has been drawn far enough away, the killdeer abandons the act and flies off. The display is also called injury feigning or a broken-wing display, and it is a form of parental defense rather than evidence of an actual injury.
Killdeer chicks are precocial: they can walk soon after hatching and are led to feeding areas by their parents. The bird’s loud “kill-deer” call gives it its common name. A related behavior, the ungulate display, involves raising the wings and charging at large animals such as grazing cattle.