Royal Albatross Cam Chick Hatches, Returns To Nest!

Meet the Northern Royal Albatross Cam’s newest star! The chick has completed hatching after spending four days in the incubator and was returned to the care of the adult male, WYL, at the Plateau nest at 12:17 p.m. on January 22. After 77 days of incubation, the chick weighed about 10 ounces (288 grams), making it one of the smaller hatchlings in the colony. Watch above to see the chick reunite with its dad in a rainy-day highlight from the cam.

Why an Incubator?: When hatching begins, rangers from the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) temporarily remove each egg across the colony and place them in an incubator for protection during the multi-day hatching process. Flies pose a serious risk at this stage, as their larvae can cause a dangerous infestation known as “fly strike.” Transporting the eggs to an incubator and spraying the nest with a bird-safe repellent removes that risk. A dummy egg is placed in each nest to keep the parents engaged until its time to meet their hatchling. Watch this process when rangers removed the Royal Cam egg from the nest on January 18.

Parental Duties: WYL had been on the nest for eight days when his hatchling returned to the nest, and he offered the chick its first meal the following morning. In these first days, the chick is also nourished by the remaining nutrients in its yolk sac. Watch an up-close feeding from January 25.

With the chick now hatched, the adults will begin changing duties more frequently during the early nestling period. DOC rangers will conduct twice-daily health checks and weigh-ins for the first five days, followed by daily checks for the next five days, and then weekly weighings after that.

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