Yesterday we saw how the first hatchling laid dead in the nestbox. Harriet was picking in the second egg and removed it. Something was very wrong!
The third egg appeared to have a little hole in it, but it was by no way a pip. Throigh the hole the content appeared to be dead and decomposing blackish. We all could see the tress the female was under, she was panting and looking very aggitated.
Harriet removed the third egg as well
When the night was setting in there was one egg left with a pip. We all hoped and prayed this one would be viable. But when daybreak came, the nestbox was empty. No peregrines, and no eggs. And in front of the nestbox there where a lot of eggshells.
Silent witnesses of the tragedy thet had occured here.
The whole clutch has been lost. But why?
In my Blogentry of yesterday I wrote about that.
Besides an infection, there might be another possibility in a new enviromental threat: Deca-BDE. It has been found in emormous quantities in peregrine falcon eggs already. It causes severe braindamage in embryo's. Concentrations of PBDE congeners in wild birds may alter thyroid hormone and vitamin A concentrations, glutathione metabolism and oxidative stress.
This morning eggshell fragments and a sample of the gravel from the scrape were retrieved for lab analysis.
We all hope both peregrines will relax and get overf this stressful tragedy. And I'm sure they will prevail. Start courtship again and lay a second clutch. Last year Harriet started her first clutch not before May 22. So there is still time.
The third egg appeared to have a little hole in it, but it was by no way a pip. Throigh the hole the content appeared to be dead and decomposing blackish. We all could see the tress the female was under, she was panting and looking very aggitated.
Harriet removed the third egg as well
When the night was setting in there was one egg left with a pip. We all hoped and prayed this one would be viable. But when daybreak came, the nestbox was empty. No peregrines, and no eggs. And in front of the nestbox there where a lot of eggshells.
Silent witnesses of the tragedy thet had occured here.
The whole clutch has been lost. But why?
In my Blogentry of yesterday I wrote about that.
Besides an infection, there might be another possibility in a new enviromental threat: Deca-BDE. It has been found in emormous quantities in peregrine falcon eggs already. It causes severe braindamage in embryo's. Concentrations of PBDE congeners in wild birds may alter thyroid hormone and vitamin A concentrations, glutathione metabolism and oxidative stress.
This morning eggshell fragments and a sample of the gravel from the scrape were retrieved for lab analysis.
We all hope both peregrines will relax and get overf this stressful tragedy. And I'm sure they will prevail. Start courtship again and lay a second clutch. Last year Harriet started her first clutch not before May 22. So there is still time.
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