Nature to take its course as second egg hatches
"It is the Cain and Abel scenario whereby the oldest chick kills the younger one. Makatsa and Mahlori cannot raise two chicks, so this is what always happens."
On Thursday, 10 June the Black Eagle Project Roodekrans (BEPR) confirmed that the second egg has hatched after confirming a day earlier that the first one had hatched.
According to BEPR, now that the second egg has hatched and there are two chicks on the nest, nature will take its course.
“It is the Cain and Abel scenario whereby the oldest chick kills the younger one. Makatsa and Mahlori cannot raise two chicks, so this is what always happens.
“Every time two eggs hatch the scenario takes place. It is called siblicide and it is a natural thing were the older chick kills the younger one,” said BERP monitor and photographer, Johann van den Berg.
Siblicide is the killing of an infant individual by its close relatives. In birds, obligate siblicidal behaviour results in the older chick killing the other chick(s).
By letting the offspring kill each other, it saves the parents time and energy that would be wasted on feeding offspring that most likely would not survive anyway.
On the morning of June 6, photographic evidence of prey being brought to the nest provided strong indications that an egg has hatched and there is a possibility of a chick on the nest.
“Members of the BEPR are very excited about the latest developments at the Botanical Garden, and hope for a successful breeding cycle to be completed,” said Johann.
