Monday afternoon, during my daily visit to check on the
Woodcock eggs, I discovered the nest site in a state of disarray. It wasn’t torn apart, but the nest location was
distinctly more visible than before. I
hurried forward to see if the change was due to a visiting predator, or a
successful hatching.
It was a hatching, although not one that was completely
successful. Two of the original four
eggs remained intact. The other two
looked to have released live chicks into the world. Unfortunately, the young birds were long gone
by the time I arrived on the scene.
The empty shells show all of the signs of a successful hatching. The chicks peck in a circular pattern around
the large end of the egg. The series of
cracks allows the end of the shell to lift off like a lid. Occasionally, the chick’s toenails will make
puncture marks in the small end of the egg as it pushes itself out of the
shell.
During the time these eggs were incubating, there have been
several thunderstorms and two flooding rains, and temperatures have ranged from
25oF to 82oF.
During the time this clutch was being laid there was a storm that
produced 2.2 inches of rain and flash flooding. The location of this nest in the low area next
to the creek could easily have been flooded.
It’s possible that the two unhatched eggs were killed during that
event. Woodcocks only produce one brood
per year, so I hope the two hatchlings are lucky enough to survive to adulthood.
Hi Steve... That's a bummer!!! Hope the two that hatched are okay. They must be cute little puff balls! :)
ReplyDeleteGrace
Hi, Grace. I've only seen Woodcock chicks twice, but they are cute. We're not supposed to have any storms for a while, so maybe these little guys can mature a bit before having to deal with harsh weather.
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