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| Bourke Parakeet, Peaches, is about to become a mother. She is an opaline fallow hen with red eyes and very sweet. |
I was able to candle two of Peaches' eggs. They are fertile. Since this is her first clutch she's very protective. I candled those two while she was briefly outside the nest box. When she hurriedly returned, I didn't get to inspect the remaining eggs as I didn't want to upset her.
I've had experienced hens that were not hand fed or hand tamed who allowed me to move them aside to see their eggs or babies without incident. They trusted me.
Peaches is hand fed and very tame. However, she will scold and peck at me if I simply place a finger on the edge of the door to her nest box. She's determined to protect her first clutch.
I looked in her box again this evening and don't see any egg shells. That's a definite indication that an egg has hatched. No hatches yet. Although, she did move a bit when she turned to scold me and at least one egg is dark and looks like it's on the verge of hatching. Perhaps tomorrow. Her first egg is 21 days old today. Our weather has been cool some days and that can delay hatching, which is usually 18 to 21 days for Bourkes.
Since she and the male are inexperienced, it's possible that the first couple of eggs won't be fertile and only the later three will be. The first two were laid several days earlier than the others, which leads me to consider that possibility.
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| Our male Bourke, Storm, is of Normal coloration, so we may end up with a diverse clutch like this one from another pair a while back. |
May all your birds stay healthy and happy,
Rosie (who also writes as Zara Heritage on Amazon.com.
My novel, Cast Me Not Away, is available as an eBook or in Print).
Peace and Blessings.
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