The Botanical Garden’s favourite couple might become parents soon
Behaviour observed during monitoring, suggests that there might be a chick on the way for the black eagles.
The need for humans to stay in their homes during the Covid-19 pandemic has benefited nature, and a good example of that is the Verreaux’s eagles at the Walter Sisulu Botanical Garden.
Gerald Draper, chairperson of the Black Eagle Project Roodekrans (BEPR) shared the good news in a Facebook post. ”Hi all, good news! We think we may have an egg!”
He added, ”Tony and Bertus have been up most days. Every day, up to 1pm this last Friday, 17 April, both adults have been seen flying with virtually a few minute stops to the nest. They unfortunately did not make a visit on Saturday, but on Sunday, 19 April, Tony spent an hour and a half there and in that time, the female spent all but about 10 minutes on the nest, in which she only took two quick breaks.”
The post further explained that this type of behaviour almost certainly suggested the female eagle has started incubation, meaning that the monitors will try and piece together a laying date which they will probably be able to do only once there is a hatching.
The post concluded with the following, ”So, we have the possibility of an egg laid late Friday afternoon (17 April), early or late Saturday (18 April), or early Sunday (19 April)”.
