SW and Ranger proudly announce the hatching of their first egg in 2010. Welcome to the world, little guy!
Falcon fans waited and strained their eyes through the night before they got a glimpse. The hatch took several days and occurred sometime during the night or early morning. The parents listened throughout ……………….
It's fun to record the date that each egg hatches and then record the eyass’s growth and progress. When does it have its first meal and what will that be? When will it take its first step? When will it get its first real feather? When will it fly? You can do this in a falcon journal, a technique that wildlife biologists use as they study the peregrines. To help you record the eyass's progress, you can go to the FalconCam and click on the archives link under each of the 3 current pictures to see all the day's activities. Will the remaining 2 eggs hatch? Several times, one of SW’s eggs has failed to hatch. Watch closely at:
Seeing the first tiny falcon hatch just after we celebrated Earth Day this year is amazing, because the species peregrine falcon was nearly extinct in North America by the 1970s. Its comeback is one of the great success stories of wildlife conservation. Let's commit ourselves to the future of all species.
Our thanks to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for sponsoring the FalconCams and for the FalconCam stills.
The photo is courtesy of Scott Wright, volunteer peregrine nest monitor. It may be used by children for school and/or personal projects, but please give Mr. Wright photo credit. All others must contact Mr. Wright directly for permission to use his photos.
And SW sat with arched back and ruffled feathers as the hatch progressed….
The tiny falcon, known as an “eyass”, began to break through its shell with a “pip” which is a hole in the egg. Mr. Harvey Webster, Director of Wildlife Resources at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History tells us: “Pipping is the act of creating a breach in the shell and shell membrane so that the chick can establish respiratory function. After the pip there is a quiet phase where the chick draws blood back into its body from the shell membrane.
Once complete, the chick will then vigorously score the inside of the shell with its egg tooth while simultaneously pushing against the blunt cap of the egg with its neck. After scoring the shell for two thirds of its circumference the chick pushes against the cap and it flexes back enough for the chick to push its way out. It generally takes 24-36 hours between the onset of the pip and actual hatching”.
