Had the pleasure of watching DC figure out egg-sitting this morning - it was amusing and amazing! Hopefully, someone started recording on Ustream, as I was so busy laughing, I forgot to capture the first couple of images! This episode begins at 6:30 a.m, but the real action starts at 6:46.
DC flew to top of cam 4, then immediately into the nestbox. Beauty departed immediately.
After standing over the eggs, he rolled a couple of them around, then flew out and sat on the main cam looking at them.
He disappeared for a couple minutes, then landed out on the corner, and walked the rail back into the nestbox, to figure out exactly what to do with these round things.
First, he assembled them in a relatively close proximity.
Very carefully, he attempted to sit down with two eggs in front of him and one just under his left wing.
As he sat down, his left wing brushed the egg, and it rolled away from him, much to his surprise!
First sit - one off left wing, one just under breast, one in front. (Please tell me there's video...)
Second attempt - two underneath him, with the escapee still outside his left wing...
Third attempt - he corraled the escapee, but Unity's egg decided to play out away further...
Fourth attempt - roll all eggs closer together and, WALLAH! success...
Time elapsed from re-entering the nestbox to victorious brooding position? Five minutes!
In true bird-land comedy fashion, who shows up two minutes later? Yes, of course, Beauty!
He first explains that he is not moving, and then (because she was still sitting out on the corner), with what must be a genetic characteristic of tiercels, he does his first great impression of, "If I ignore you, you will go away!"
After resting a bit from his exhausting class at brooding school, he decided to give up the box and head for the skies...
Five minute rodeo job, twelve minute brooding practice... all in all, a great first egg-sit for our young DC!
(movie)