It was wonderful to see both Maya and Blue 33(11) return much earlier this year. Maya arrived back on the 21 March and 33(11) on 27 March .
Since arriving back Maya and 33 have reestablished their partnership and are busy preparing their nest to hold these precious eggs which we so eagerly await.
Maya laid her eggs after 9 days last year so we could see eggs anytime from 6 April.
Thanks for this info about incubation Vespa. I never knew this so very interesting.
Scylla - that is great news to hear you're set up!
Karen W said:great news to hear you're set up!
Only for snapping tho, as yet :-) I wonder if the cams aren't dropping out as often as they were? Speaking too soon?
IMAGICAT
I think the cams have been better the last couple of days.
Hopefully later today, we'll see Maya lay her second egg.
Off for a bit now ... BBL
Yes I think they are better too Karen, fingers crossed.
Is any one else watching the camera?. I have a feeling there is an egg on its way?
Birdies LG DU update.
Unknown said:I think that at the early stages of their development the eggs are very able to cope with not being incubated, many birds don't actually start incubating until all the eggs are laid.
Our herring gulls are red listed birds. Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.
Raptors are different VC in that they incubate as eggs arrive. They do not wait for whole clutch. It is normal for raptors that often later eggs are back - up incase mishaps with earlier ones. You see this in the feeding of the chicks and the sibling rivalry - adult raptors never/very rarely intervene. Survival of the fittest in the raptor world.
This way if food is scarce the dominant earliest hatched chick will have the best chance of survival thus continuing the breeding line.
This egg was early but not impossibly so. This is what Loch Garten said when EJ laid a similar egg in 2008
Now we know who came out of that first egg in 2008?
See Q&A 2008
Tiger Signature
Nethy?