can they stay on the ground 24/7 to protect the chick. having said that, i did see an adult feed a chick on the ground once. it was at a nest in a gravel pit where a chick had landed on a small hill of sand. the female fed the chick there and i watched for many hours as the chick walked up higher and eventually made very short flights from one pile of sand to another and, yes, made it back to the nest! i spent about three hours planning a rescue in my head that, in the end, was not required! i love a happy ending!
i really tried 