The 30th Day on Continuous Incubation – No Pip and No Hatch Yet
So, according to the Falcon Etiquette Handbook, Chapter 3, Section 7, Subsection B, Clause 4, it’s written in bold font: “Male Peregrines shall not, under any circumstances, take nighttime incubation shifts.” But guess who missed that memo? Ares, the maverick falcon who prefers winging it over reading dry ornithological textbooks. Last night, when Astrid took her unscheduled break from nest duty at the fashionably late hour of 12:30 AM, Ares swooped, ready to play Mr. Mom. When Astrid returned 2 1/2 hours later, Ares, dug in his talons and refused to budge for 7 minutes. Some impatient chirping finally convinced him to skedaddle. One can only imagine Ares flying off into the night, muttering about needing to catch up on his Falcon Code of Conduct reading.
Well, today’s egg report is in, and alas, no pips, or cracks, or peeps, or chicks – not yet anyhow. But fear not, dear egg enthusiasts, for as we’ve hinted before, the grand hatching will most likely start happening on Tuesday or Wednesday. Nevertheless, our egg-watch duties continue unabated, with each egg receiving its fair share of scrutiny whenever we manage to glimpse them during changeovers.
