For me, it was a first but perhaps many of you will have witnessed this before. We all know how rampant zebras are for breeding and I should know as I have 3 breeding couples all going for it at the moment.
Currently the 3 couples are in different stages of egg laying to hatchlings. I have one couple, a black cheeked male and a penguin (is that the correct name for them) female paired who had been sitting on 6 eggs, 5 fertile with the oldest hatching on Friday. Another came yesterday and due to my calculations the 3rd should have hatched today.
So this morning, as per usual I've checked the nest boxes. I should have found 3 chicks + 3 eggs but what I came across was 2 chicks + 1 egg!
Turns out the Friday (oldest) hatchling was on the floor, still alive thank goodness and the eggs were smashed on the floor, one sadly bloodied but luckily the other wasn't fertilised. I collected up the chick and warmed it in my hand and then placed it back in the nest. I inspected the egg with blood as it was still whole although in my opinion it hand puncture marks. It didn't appear to just be smashed due to the fall. The other was like a cracked egg, yolk in sight.
The parents have continued their duties today are feeding all 3 chicks as normal. My immediate thought was they had had a fright in the middle of the night. The only thing that goes against that is their nest is pretty damned clever. They've left a well where the eggs and chicks are towards the back of the box so if they bolted I'd expect the young would stay safe. It's just a first for me.
Its the cocks first time but its her second and she has been a good mum raising 6 babies before. All very strange. So a little bit of bad and good news all rolled into one.
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