Rosy Bourke Hens in nests, November, 2011

Photo taken Nov. 18 of Rosie on four eggs.

Rosie laid four eggs. The first baby to hatch lived for less than a day. Not sure why, but its belly was very dark, not a good sign. It had a small amount of food in its crop. It was laying in front of Rosie, not under her. She probably realized it had died.

Rosie's two babies, and an egg that won't hatch.
Photo taken Nov. 23, 2011

The next day, she hatched another egg and two days later another. The last, and fourth egg, appears to be fertile, but isn't likely to hatch. Notice the dark color at one end and the big band of white on the shell in the photo. A fully mature chick should fill the entire egg. I think it died sometime before it completed its growth in the shell.

It's a mystery to me though, why a chick can have the strength to get out of the shell and then die anyway. Did it have a genetic defect and its mother helped it get out of the shell? Yet, it wasn't able to survive despite her assistance?

The other two appear healthy. Both have dark eyes.

Fuchsia sitting on five eggs. Photo from Nov. 18.

Fuchsia has laid five eggs, just as she did twice before. They are due to hatch within the next few days.

When Rosie's babies are three weeks old, I will pull them to hand feed. Fuchsia's will join Rosie's and be hand fed too. Since it is a third clutch this year for both hens, they will benefit from the rest.

I hope one of Fuchsia's will have pink eyes and be a hen ... we shall see.

Not a flattering picture of my favorite bird.
I love this white-faced, pink-eyed Bourke. I suppose
he is an opaline, fallow... Much prettier than the photo.

This lovely white-faced Bourke was hatched this summer from Rhett and Cherry. He was hand fed, and my sweetest bird. He's also the reason I hope Fuchsia and Flame produce another white-faced, pink-eyed hen as a mate for him. That's the real reason I let both Rosie and Fuchsia have third clutches this year, in the hope for a hen who looks like him. Rosie produced one in her first clutch and another in her second, but they aren't hand fed. Even though Rosie didn't have one in this third clutch, I'll hand feed them anyway.

Still have hopes that Fuchsia will hatch a pink-eyed baby over the next few days. If she doesn't, I'll have to spend more time hand taming one of Rosie's from her earlier clutches, however, I'm not certain of their sex yet.

May all your bird adventures be happy ones.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Peace & Blessings.