Exciting news from the island today… we have our very first
Yellow-Nosed Albatross chick!!
Found during my regular monitoring rounds, it was something of a relief to spot a tiny bundle of grey fluff in place of an egg. The first egg was found on the 22nd September, and Molly’s usually have to incubate for between 64 and 70 days before the eggs hatch. This means that chicks could have arrived any time from about a week and a half ago, and I’ve been waiting with baited breath! My monitoring colony has 5 chicks, and there are plenty more appearing all over the island. I also came across a good number of eggs in the process of hatching; the chicks hidden inside making very sweet ‘pipping’ noises to their parents, and even some with holes in the eggshell. Hatching can be a lengthy process, but I’m hoping that many more will have broken free by the time I next visit the colony.
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| STOP PRESS: New-borns on Gough Island (Em Witcutt) |
Found during my regular monitoring rounds, it was something of a relief to spot a tiny bundle of grey fluff in place of an egg. The first egg was found on the 22nd September, and Molly’s usually have to incubate for between 64 and 70 days before the eggs hatch. This means that chicks could have arrived any time from about a week and a half ago, and I’ve been waiting with baited breath! My monitoring colony has 5 chicks, and there are plenty more appearing all over the island. I also came across a good number of eggs in the process of hatching; the chicks hidden inside making very sweet ‘pipping’ noises to their parents, and even some with holes in the eggshell. Hatching can be a lengthy process, but I’m hoping that many more will have broken free by the time I next visit the colony.
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| Caught in the act; a hatching egg (Em Witcutt) |
Molly chicks are very sweet. Tiny and defenceless at the moment, they are entirely dependent on their parents for food, warmth and protection from the ever-present Skuas, who would sweep them up in an instant if given the opportunity. The adults will continue to take turns in caring for the youngster for now. However, the chicks will grow quickly, and will soon be too big for the Skuas to handle.
Their parents will then leave them to fend for
themselves, and both head out to sea in search of food for their offspring. This
change in behaviour is timed to perfection. As the chick grows, so will it’s
need for food. Soon enough one adult would no longer be able to satisfy their
greedy youngster, and both are needed to meet its demands.
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| A proud parent examining its prize (Em Witcutt) |
Our chicks won’t be leaving us until April, when they may
not return to land for eight years. Expect plenty of pictures as they grow…
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| Ahhhhh.... (Em Witcutt) |
Em
PS It's taken so long for the internet to let me load this post that by now we have over 20 chicks!
PS It's taken so long for the internet to let me load this post that by now we have over 20 chicks!
Magical wildlife experience!! Keep well and happy! Dave D
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