First Pip in Progress
The start of a pip (the initial hole the chick makes in the egg as it begins to hatch) was twice observed, very briefly, in one of the reddish-brown eggs yesterday morning at 11:39 am as the female falcon shifted her incubating position, then again at 3:51 pm during an incubation exchange.
Further progress on this pip was observed briefly this morning at 7:08 am, when the male falcon revealed a more obvious completed hole in the same reddish-brown egg.
Male falcon with pipped egg.
We saw the pip had enlarged at 9:58am when the female shifted her position and the eggs. In the photo below, the chick can be seen through the enlarged pip.
Female falcon with pipped egg. The chick can be viewed through the enlarged pip.
Hatching is an energy demanding process. The young chick uses its egg tooth, a small knob on top of its bill, to hammer the pip in the egg. It periodically works to break the egg around the pip area, but rests much of the time. The entire process from initial pip to hatch can take up to 72 hours. We will continue to monitor this egg’s progress very closely and hope to see it hatch soon.