A Red Rump Parrot for Diamond!

The wait is now over. The first of the three eggs of Xavier and Diamond has now hatched. That was at 04:56.

In the image below you can catch a glimpse of the little furry ball and the shell that Diamond has moved.

At 06:42, the eyas was much more dry and fluffy.

But where is Xavier? He hasn’t been in the scrape at the usual time. There he is caught doing a fly by at 07:44. Whew.

Diamond will be very protective of the eyas for the first several days when it is so vulnerable. We continue to watch and to hope that all three eggs hatch and that there are three healthy chicks that fledge for this adorable couple.

Everyone joked that Xavier was out hunting for a very special breakfast for the chick and Diamond and Xavier did not disappoint. He delivered a Red-rumped Parrot! Remember. The main diet of the Melbourne falcons is pigeon while it is other birds in the rural areas. I am told that parrots are as plentiful in rural Australia as the pigeons are in the cities.

Diamond is taking it from Xavier. She will pluck it but she decides not to try and feed the newly born eyas but, instead, to take a break herself. Indeed, the eyas has had the advantage of the nutrients in the egg and does not require feeding right away. Look how tiny it is between those two eggs. Meanwhile, Diamond is going to enjoy her parrot breakfast. Thank goodness it is not a Starling – Diamond hates Starlings.

This is a male Red Rumped Parrot. They are considered to be highly intelligent and are often sought after as pets as they have a very pleasant voice. They are also called the Red back or Grass Parrot. They are large populations of them in Austral-Asia.

A nice image of the new family! Xavier gets to see the new baby!!

The little eyas is a little wiggly but showed no signs of interest in food. It was hard work getting out of that shell and that was only a couple of hours ago. It must have been exhausting work. Diamond continues to pluck the parrot but takes it away from the scrape to eat it.

It is hot in Australia. The chicks in Melbourne have been fed and Mum is being the umbrella. It will be 21 degrees C in Melbourne today.

Just look at how much they have grown! Look carefully at the one sitting up. See the shiny spot with no feathery down? That is the crop. It is full. When the eyases sleep on the gravel and wiggle around, the crop is hard and the feathers come off. It is nothing to worry about.

The camera has been acting up at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge. The trio of nestlings had a large fish arrive this morning.

Everyone was still eating 25 minutes later. no doubt they will all be full and as you can see they are lined up in their typical manner. Look at the one on the right. Notice that there are more feathers coming on the top of the wings and on the back. That is Little Bob in the middle.

All of the birds are doing well. It is exciting to have a new chick to watch grow and hopefully those other two eggs will hatch quickly. Last year Diamond and Xavier had one chick, Izzi.

The voting for Australian Bird of the Year 2021 has closed. The Peregrine Falcons made it to the final voting. The winner will be announced at mid-day on 8 October in London.

Thank you for joining me today. Take care. See you soon.

Here is the link to the streaming cam in Orange, Australia where you can watch Xavier and Diamond:

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: the Port Lincoln Osprey Cam, Charles Sturt University at Orange and Cilla Kinross, and 367 Collins Street Falcons by Mirvac.