Hooray! The first egg hatched at the Cathedral of Learning this morning, April 22, at about 9:32a. (And his mother, Hope, did not harm him!)
HAPPY UPDATE, later the same day:
The first chick hatched successfully and was not harmed. The slideshow below shows the hatchling and his parents on Monday 22 April 2019 from 9:32 to 9:42 am. Here’s a summary of the action:
- Terzo (father bird) is on the nest at the moment the chick is first visible at 9:32am
- Hope (mother bird) arrives at 9:38:07 to trade places with Terzo.
- Hope carries the chick away from the scrape at 9:38:45. She does not harm it. She carries it back to the nest. (This was the only dangerous moment.)
- Hope prepares to brood the chick at 9:41:56. We can see that the chick is fine.
- Hope settles on the nest at 9:42:35. The coast is clear for this chick.
Terzo looks at the first Pitt peregrine hatchling, 22 April 2019, 9:32am
When Terzo arrives to trade places with Hope at 12:45pm, we can see the chick standing up, white and fluffy, in the slideshow below.
Hope sleeps while brooding the chick and incubating the eggs, 22 April 2019, 12:42:53
The first chick hatched without incident. We know from three years’ experience that Hope only kills a chick when it first hatches. Once she begins to brood it, the chick is safe.
There are four more eggs to go, so keep in mind …
Caution! Don’t watch the eggs hatch at the Cathedral of Learning if it upsets you to see a mother kill her young.
I’ll keep you posted.
(photos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)
YAY! Thanks for the update Kate!
thanks for the update.
NOTE: HOPE (not! Terzo) ATE THE CHICK.
not very good update.
Terzoate egg, then late this afternoon, two chicks and three eggs were in nest. (that means 6 total) and then just before 7 p.m. another egg was eaten.jim, Hope is the one who ate the chick, not Terzo. There was still an empty half shell on the nest. I believe that’s what she ate at 7p
Thanks so much for the update Kate. I’ve been watching all morning and Terzo was on the eggs. When I refreshed with the arrow, Terzo was gone and I saw Hope standing there and the little chick laying beside her and quickly closed my browser. I was afraid to look again until I knew everything was ok. Hoping for the best for the remaining 4 eggs.
Carol, it is very good news that Terzo was there!
I was watching and seemed Terzo was on the eggs when the first one hatched. Perhaps that’s why all is well. Praying for the next one too.
I said to myself,,take a look…& you gave the good! news! Let’s keep our fingers crossed..maybe Mother Nature will break the pattern..thanks Kate….
This IS good news. I am checking in, but not watching. I have the same curiosity in that is this little one OK because Terzo was on it when it hatched. I know that no one has answers….just saying. Thanks, Kate and watchers for keeping us informed.
SEE THE 4:30PM HAPPY UPDATE ON THE ORIGINAL POST & THE NOTE FROM KATE ST. JOHN BELOW: THE CHICK IS FINE.
It if was Hope on the egg in the beginning, then it was Terzo who came in immediately and grabbed up the baby, swinging it around in his mouth, doing something to it with his back turned to us, and then sitting on the remaining eggs. I thought it must have been Torzo who originally was sitting o the eggs when the baby hatched, and Hope who came in and dispatched the baby.
A NOTE FROM KATE ST. JOHN REGARDING THIS COMMENT: THE CHICK HATCHED AT 9:32AM. IT IS ALIVE AND WELL AS OF 4:30PM. HOPE DID NOT KILL IT. THE DANGER PERIOD FOR THIS CHICK HAS PASSED.
I saw an an adult sitting with a fluff looking out then another adult flew in and first one left. The new adult picked up the chick and I closed the app.
A NOTE FROM KATE ST. JOHN: SEE THE 4:30PM HAPPY UPDATE ON THE ORIGINAL POST. THE CHICK IS FINE.
A Note from Kate St. John: I have updated the blog post at 4:30pm with two slideshows. The dangerous period has passed for this 1st nestling. It is fine.
Thank goodness for this baby chick.
Is anyone else having trouble watching the cam? Mine keeps timing out and takes forever to come back up? I’ve checked all my settings but they are all OK. I know it goes off after a certain amount of time. But mine never was this bad until a short time after the chick hatched.
Patricia, I’m having the same problem. The National Aviary reported it to the provider. I hope it’s fixed soon.
Thank you Kate. I appreciate you checking on it and letting us know. Had me a nervous wreck. Bad timing. I can breathe easier now. You are the best!
well that answers a question I had posed on the earlier post that you had about the upcoming hatching-seems that since Terzo was on the eggs she didn’t harm it. Hopefully, the rest of the egg hatching will go well & she won’t harm any of them.
This morning around 9:30ish I think the third egg hatched. I’m not sure because I kept walking away but it appeared to be a broken egg with a chick in it but it wasn’t moving. I got scared and walked away so I’m not sure. Just a few minuets ago Hope got up and it looked like three chicks. Thanks for the updates.
Lori, as of 2:01p on 4/23 there are still only 2 chicks.
Thanks Kate, I think my eyes were deceiving me : ) Hopefully soon though.
Kate, I’m not positive but, it looked like No. 3 hatched under Tero, Hope came in and chased him out. She stood over the new one and seemed to drag it over to the other two, her back was to me, but I think she may have fed it to them. I hope I’m wrong.
Patricia, yup, bad news again. I made a slideshow of what happened at Bad News Again, Hope Kills Chick 3