23 May 2020
Yesterday morning when I wrote about Morela incubating alone I said she would eventually stop. Little did I know that she already had.
In yesterday’s Day-in-a-Minute video she’s away from the nest most of the day, then perches nearby when present. She’s certainly not incubating.
Morela will eventually stop visiting the nest. So ends the nesting season.
The eggs will remain until it’s time for us humans to perform nest and camera maintenance next December or January.
(photo and vides from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ. of Pittsburgh)
Feel sorry for whomever has to pick up those eggs in 6+ months.
So sad. First we have a Mother who eats her chicks and now a Mother who abandons her eggs. Wonder who will lay claim to the nest next mating season? The saga continues.
Michael, yes, Hope was problematic but in the case of Morela she has not abandoned good eggs. She knows (somehow) that they are already non-viable and is not going to spend more energy on them. It may even be that her incubation hormones have shut off.
So bummed for this outcome after the delightful surprise of not one but two eggs. Those boys better figure it out before next season!! ?