Some species are known for nesting directly on the ground rather than in trees or shrubs. These ground-nesting birds often choose open fields, grasslands, or sandy areas where they can build simple nests made from grass, leaves, or pebbles. Nesting on the ground allows them quick access to foraging areas and can reduce the energy needed to travel up and down from elevated nests.
Ground nests are usually well-camouflaged to blend with their surroundings. The eggs laid in these nests often have colors or patterns that mimic the soil, leaves, or stones around them, helping to protect them from predators. This camouflage is essential, as these nests are more exposed than those built in elevated locations.
Incubation and protection of the eggs require careful attention. Parents often take turns keeping the eggs warm and may use distraction techniques to draw predators away from the nest. Some species are highly secretive, remaining motionless near the nest to avoid drawing attention.
Chicks that hatch from ground nests are often precocial, meaning they are relatively mature and mobile shortly after hatching. This allows them to follow parents and forage for food quickly, increasing their chances of survival in an environment where they are more vulnerable to predators.
Bird Species that Nest on the Ground
Killdeer
A master of deception, the Killdeer doesn’t build a traditional nest but rather lays its eggs in a simple, shallow scrape on gravel, dirt, or even gravel rooftops. Its eggs are beautifully camouflaged to look like stones. When a predator approaches, the adult performs a famous “broken-wing” act, feigning injury to lure the threat away from the nest.
Mallard
One of the most common ducks, the female Mallard builds a well-concealed nest on the ground, often in tall grass or under shrubs near water. She lines the nest with soft down feathers plucked from her own breast, which both insulates the eggs and helps camouflage her while she incubates.
Ostrich
The world’s largest bird creates a simple, communal ground nest. A dominant hen will scrape out a large pit, where she and several other hens will lay their eggs. The dominant female and male take turns incubating the massive clutch, which can contain over 30 eggs from multiple females.
Common Tern
These graceful seabirds nest in large, noisy colonies on sandy or pebbly beaches and islands. Their “nest” is nothing more than a shallow depression in the ground. Their pale, speckled eggs and downy chicks blend perfectly with the surrounding pebbles and shells.
Whip-poor-will
A nocturnal bird named for its repetitive song, the Whip-poor-will lays its eggs directly on the forest floor among dead leaves. Its mottled brown plumage makes it virtually invisible when sitting on the nest, relying entirely on cryptic coloration to avoid detection.
American Woodcock
This well-camouflaged shorebird of young forests and thickets nests in a slight depression on the ground, often at the base of a shrub or sapling. The female lines the nest with dead leaves and grass, and her brown, streaked plumage makes her blend seamlessly into the forest floor.
Horned Lark
A bird of open fields, prairies, and tundra, the Horned Lark builds its nest in a small scrape on the ground, often next to a clump of grass or a stone for shelter. The nest is a neat cup of grass and plant stems, woven so tightly it can hold water.
Snowy Plover
This small, pale shorebird nests on bare or sparsely vegetated sand along coastlines and alkaline lakes. Its nest is a simple scrape in the sand, sometimes lined with shell fragments. Its eggs and chicks are perfectly colored to mimic the sandy beach, making them extremely difficult to spot.
Wild Turkey
A large ground-dwelling bird, the female Wild Turkey scratches out a shallow depression at the base of a tree, within dense brush, or in tall grass. She lines it with leaves and grass to create a concealed spot for her large clutch of 10-12 eggs.
Emperor Penguin
In a class of its own, the Emperor Penguin of Antarctica does not build a nest at all. The female lays a single egg and transfers it to the male’s feet, where he incubates it on top of his feet under a warm fold of belly skin, enduring the harsh Antarctic winter while standing on the ice.
Northern Bobwhite
This popular game bird nests in a well-hidden scrape on the ground, often at the base of a grass clump or under a brush pile. The nest is a neatly lined dome of grasses and leaves, with a small side entrance, helping to conceal the large clutch of pure white eggs.
Sandhill Crane
These tall, graceful birds build a massive nest of vegetation in the middle of wetlands, marshes, or even wet prairies. They create a large mound of cattails, sedges, and other plants, which is essentially a sturdy, elevated platform on the ground surrounded by water for protection.
Piping Plover
A threatened shorebird, the Piping Plover nests on open, sandy beaches and alkali lakeshores. Its nest is a simple, shallow scrape (“scrape nest”) in the sand, sometimes lined with small shell fragments or pebbles. Its pale eggs and chicks are masters of camouflage.
Willow Ptarmigan
A bird of the Arctic and alpine tundra, the Willow Ptarmigan nests in a shallow depression on the ground, often sheltered by a willow shrub or a rock. The female’s mottled brown summer plumage provides perfect camouflage against the mossy and lichen-covered ground.
Common Eider
These large sea ducks nest in dense colonies on coastal islands. The female lines a shallow ground scrape with a massive amount of incredibly soft, warm down feathers plucked from her own breast. This down is famous for its use in high-quality bedding and jackets.
Sprague’s Pipit
A secretive bird of the North American prairies, Sprague’s Pipit builds its nest in a unique way. The female constructs a well-hidden, domed nest of grass on the ground with a side entrance, creating a small, roofed shelter for her eggs and young.
Malleefowl
An expert ground-nester from Australia, the Malleefowl does not use body heat to incubate its eggs. Instead, the male builds a massive compost heap nest out of sand and organic matter. He meticulously regulates the temperature by adding or removing material, and the female lays her eggs in the center of the mound.
Ring-necked Pheasant
This introduced game bird nests in a shallow depression on the ground, concealed by dense grasses, weeds, or brushy cover. The nest is sparsely lined with nearby vegetation, and the female’s streaked brown plumage makes her nearly invisible while incubating.
Least Tern
These small, agile terns nest in large colonies on sandy or gravelly beaches, often on the same open shorelines as plovers. Their nest is a simple, unlined scrape in the sand. Their eggs are camouflaged to look like the surrounding pebbles and shell fragments.
Upland Sandpiper
A bird of vast grasslands and prairies, the Upland Sandpiper nests in a well-concealed scrape on the ground. The nest is lined with grasses and hidden amidst tall vegetation. The bird will often slip away quietly from the nest to avoid drawing attention to its location.
Greater Roadrunner
This iconic bird of the American Southwest builds a bulky nest of sticks, leaves, and snakeskin in a low, dense, thorny bush or a small tree, but it is often situated very low, sometimes even on the ground itself, especially in a protected location like a rock crevice or the base of a cactus.
Sora
A common but secretive rail of North American marshes, the Sora builds its nest in a clump of cattails or other emergent vegetation over shallow water. The nest is a woven platform of dead vegetation, essentially creating a grounded nest surrounded by and hidden within the wetland.
Canada Goose
Known for their adaptability, Canada Geese often nest on the ground near water. They choose sites on islands, along shorelines, or even on raised mounds in marshes. The nest is a large bowl of grasses, moss, and down, and the female is highly aggressive in its defense.
Lapland Longspur
A bird of the high Arctic tundra, the Lapland Longspur nests in a small, well-insulated cup of grass, moss, and feathers, hidden in a depression on the ground. The nest is often tucked beside a rock or a clump of vegetation for shelter from the harsh winds.
Thick-billed Murre
These seabirds nest in vast, crowded colonies on sheer sea cliffs. However, they do not build a nest. Instead, they lay their single, pear-shaped egg directly on a bare rock ledge. The egg’s shape prevents it from rolling off the cliff, and both parents take turns incubating it.
Eastern Meadowlark
A symbol of open grasslands, the Eastern Meadowlark weaves a remarkable domed nest from grasses, creating a roofed structure with a side entrance. This “grass hut” is built directly on the ground in a dense patch of grass, making it incredibly difficult to find.
Razorbill
Similar to the murre, the Razorbill is a seabird that nests on rocky cliffs and in crevices on the ground in colonies. They do not build a nest but lay their single, conical egg directly on the rocky substrate, relying on the egg’s shape and the sheltered location to keep it safe.
Wilson’s Snipe
This cryptically colored shorebird nests in a well-hidden scrape in a marsh or wet meadow. The nest is typically lined with fine grasses and is often concealed under a canopy of overhanging vegetation, with the female relying on her camouflage for protection.
Gray Partridge
Introduced to North America, this plump game bird nests in a simple, grass-lined scrape on the ground. The nest is almost always hidden within dense, tall grass or crops, with the female’s mottled plumage providing excellent camouflage while she incubates her large clutch.
Arctic Tern
Known for its incredible migration, the Arctic Tern breeds in colonies on the ground in the Arctic. Its nest is a simple, unlined scrape in sand, gravel, or sparse vegetation, often on islands or coastal areas. The eggs and chicks are camouflaged to blend with the stony environment.
Common Quail
This small, elusive game bird nests in a simple, well-hidden scrape on the ground within dense grass, crops, or low shrubbery. The nest is sparsely lined with surrounding vegetation, and the female’s beautifully cryptic plumage makes her virtually invisible while incubating her clutch.
Puffin
Atlantic Puffins nest in large colonies on coastal cliffs and islands. They dig burrows into the soft soil of slopes or use natural rock crevices. At the end of this burrow, which can be several feet long, the female lays a single egg directly on the ground in a rudimentary nest of grass and feathers.
Nighthawk (Common Nighthawk)
Unlike most birds, the Common Nighthawk does not build any nest structure. It lays its two well-camouflaged eggs directly on bare ground, gravel, rocky outcrops, or even flat gravel rooftops. The eggs’ marbled pattern blends perfectly with the substrate, and the incubating bird relies on its own cryptic coloration for safety.
Kentish Plover (Snowy Plover)
This small, pale plover nests on open, sandy or shingle beaches and salt flats around the world. Its nest is a simple scrape in the substrate, sometimes lined with tiny shell fragments. The eggs and chicks are exquisitely camouflaged against the bare, sun-bleached ground.
Skylark
A celebrated songbird of open fields and grasslands across Europe and Asia, the Skylark builds its nest in a small hollow on the ground, hidden within a dense tussock of grass. The nest is a neat cup of grass and roots, woven so tightly that it can often hold water.
Tawny Frogmouth
While often mistaken for an owl and thought to nest in trees, the Tawny Frogmouth of Australia and Tasmania is a ground nester. It lays its one to three eggs in a very rudimentary platform of loose sticks that is placed on a horizontal tree branch, but it is so flimsy and shallow that it is essentially a nest on a “ground” of sticks, offering little more than a rim to keep the eggs from rolling away.