Watching nesting, egglaying on CCTV

Peter · Foundation Member Joined: Oct 15, 2004 Posts: 599

Yes, this is all verry interesting. And like Wyndara I'm looking forward as well to see the results of a second pair.

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

Yeah its cool....
I have to delete/trim the files each day...where nothing realy happens..like the middle of the night they move around so (I assume) they dont get stiff, sort of rolling over in bed signlol

That takes each day down from 3 gig to about 0.5 gig...to do that I have to go thru 100s of snippets from a few kb to 10 meg.

I do have 1 issue, the cameras record at about 20 to 25 frames /sec,
I can watch at normal speed on the Geo Vision player
and players like windows media play at 30 frames/sec. so unless I can find a open source player , others will have to watch at fast speed.
ANY IDEAS ANYONE?

As hatching gets closer, the male now gets more and more aggressive to intruders / other birds and stuff if they get to close.
This pair are not tame, will not take food from the hand.

And another thing, not only does the male never sit or roll eggs, he is never in the nesting box by himself...if the female is out, so is he, and he knows where she is all the time....often standing close by the nest gaurding the nest and female.

Bertman · Snr Member Joined: Dec 29, 2006 Posts: 94

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

Native NZ timber..Rimu /Kauri...wood turnings from a wood turner
And about 1/4 mulch from the forest floor, including small sticks
About 2 1/2 to 3" deep

See pic in previous post....
U dont see the mulch there, this I put on top, the period before eggs are laid the female turns, stomps, repeating many times, the mulch falls to the bottom..
The mulch part ..well I have a theory, the smell taste etc would be similar to what would be in a tree hollow in the wild..I could not say if it helps at all.....but there is nothing left of the mulch and sticks once the chicks leave the nest...still have to see why.

Bertman · Snr Member Joined: Dec 29, 2006 Posts: 94

like your theory, I will give that atry myself

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

!st Chick hatched at 10:36am this morning.
The hen very rarely left the nest over the last few days, the male constantly feeding the hen.
1 of the 4 eggs 'disappeared a couple days ago, we think she has buried it.
And we think it is still buried as we have 1 chick and 2 eggs

Both parents are present when the chick hatches, upto hatching the male continues to feed the hen, and she keeps the eggs covered, both puning themselves.
The hen doesnt give the chick any help, and moves aside when it has hatched...they both inspect, the chick, the male also picks it up.
Both hang around puneing themselves and male feeding the female, then they both have a sleep for 1/4hr !!!

The female then sits over the chick, and male feeds the hen.

About 30 mins later the chick gets 1st feed from the hen, she simply reaches undernether her...DRAGS the chick out, flips it on its back, quickly feeds it, then tucks it back underneath..

So this is 29 days from laying of the 1st egg
25 days from laying of the last egg.
About 20/21 days from when she started to seriously sit and roll the eggs

I did expect 1st hatching to be about 4 to 5 days ago...and we where realy begining to think they where infertile.
We where starting to consider candling the eggs, but have not...
The object was to observe without interferance...the only interference into the nesting box was to recover the 'lost' buried egg mentioned several posts back.

PIC: 28 mins old
Out to the right level with the hens shoulder one can see part of the eggshell.
To the right of the hens head, level with about her ear, one can see the chicks head and part of the body, this is where the hen has draged it out and just tossed it on its back, for the 1st feed.

hilly · Snr Member Joined: Sep 07, 2006 Posts: 38

Hi Steptoe,
This has been a great insight for all of us, quite a few surprises it has all been excellent thanks. Keep it coming.
<v>

Cheers Jenny

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

Male doesnt feed the chick...only the female
He is constanly feeding here and she the chick
She now very rarely exits the nest
Expected another egg to hatch today...maybe tomorrow then

Peter · Foundation Member Joined: Oct 15, 2004 Posts: 599

How is it with the chicks? Any news?

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

The chick died a couple days ago....
I have a heap of video to go thru to find where and why, thu at this stage I have a gut feeling it may have something to do with 24/7 exposure to the infrared ???

The reaction of the parents is rather interesting...
Again once I go thru the video I will post up.

thenan · Regular Member Joined: May 12, 2007 Posts: 21

Thanx for the brilliant description of your nesting Kaks. I am a beginner & am getting ready to put the pair in a new aviary. It should be interesting