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[Lani]

Happy New Year New Zealand!

https://x.com/i/status/1874235783940628615

Amīria, the Royalcam chick from 2018, has returned to Pukekura and has been banded YA43,
Here she is in 2018

[Lani]

Kia ora koutou (hello everyone) from Ranger Sharyn Broni

The Royalcam nest.

Egg candling 2nd of January.

At around 9am Julia candled the Signal Station Trig egg to check for healthy development. The embryo is developing just fine and is 52 days old. If we do find failed eggs the parents can be given a dummy for when we need them as foster parents later. This increases the chances of fledging more chicks.


 

[Lani]

Royal Albatross - Handsome Dad RLK / KA85 💙 on his nest 🥚 💕

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hUCQ8TaIm0&t=7s

[Lani]

Royal Albie RLK waits patiently for his mate GLG to return from her foraging for food.




Royal Albatross ~ Ranger Sharyn Cuts The Grass Around The Royalcam Nest! 🌿 1.12.25

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI2mH8Xuztw&t=1s

[Lani]

Royal Albatross ~ GLG Returns Home! 💕 Beautiful Skycalls With RLK! 💕 Fast Changeover! 💕 1.15.25
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iIKcAkoFFw

Jan 15, 2025
The video opens with RLK on the nest and GLG flying overhead on her return home! RLK recognizes her in mid air and he skycalls. GLG will circle around, land and come walking towards the nest - RLK skycalls to his beloved again. GLG returns his greeting as she approaches the nest. They both engage in some sweet affection and allopreening for a few minutes until RLK is ready to get up off the egg.

It is a fast changeover with RLK getting up and GLG immediately going to the egg to take over incubation duties. RLK stays around the nest to garden for a few minutes before he departs to the sea to forage for food.

GLG was gone twelve days at sea foraging for food. RLK now can enjoy some good fishing and squid meals! Thank you for watching! Video captured & edited by Lady Hawk

Mom GLG is returning home after 12 days at sea foraging for food. 


A Big Welcome Home greeting from dad! 

[Lani]

b]Kia ora koutou[/b] (hello everyone) From Ranger Sharyn Broni

The Royalcam nest.
Currently Mom GLG is on the nest.
GLG arrived on the 15th of January.

The egg is now 70 days old. Visual checks for Signal Station Trig egg start in 3 days’ time on the 23rd of January.
Check out what we do and why we do it here: https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/albatrosses/royal-albatross-toroa/royal-cam/rangers-work-for-royal-albatross/

What To Expect On The Royal Albatross Cam: January | Hatching
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETjHi2xa8ds&t=1s

To add to our growing list of other species on Royalcam here is a Red Admiral butterfly, voted Bug of the Year 2024.
https://www.nzbutterflies.org.nz/species-info/red-admiral/

[Lani]

Kia ora koutou (hello everyone) from Ranger Sharyn Broni

The Royalcam nest.
Mom GLG and Dad RLK


Currently GLG is on the nest.
The first check for signs of hatching on the 23rd of January.

Early Morning Egg Inspection at the #RoyalCam Nest | January 22, 2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy5dWbZ5aZ4&t=1s

Chick calling and tapping could be heard from within the shell.

The egg has pipped on the 24th of January and has been taken to the incubator for prevention of fly strike. This was at 10:20 am if scrolling back on the live stream or watch this highlight clip here:

 Today is the Day! Hatching Begins at the #RoyalCam Nest! January 24, 2025
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVuZ9zHjzac

Jan 23, 2025
As hatching nears at the Northern Royal Albatross nest featured on the Royal Cam, rangers from the New Zealand Department of Conservation are monitoring the status of all of the eggs at the albatross colony. At this stage of development, the rangers are looking for signs of the chick starting to break out of the egg (a process called "pipping"). Today was that day!

Now that the egg begun hatching, it is moved to an incubator to protect the hatching chick from fly infestation called "flystrike", and a fake egg will be tucked under the adult. After a successful hatch in the incubator, the chick will be returned to the nest and the breeding season will proceed as normal.

The nest was sprayed with Avian Insect Liquidator. Harmless to birds this product kills the flies who would lay their eggs in the hatching toroa egg given half a chance. The introduced sheep fly maggots hatch very quickly and do a lot of damage to the very vulnerable toroa chicks.

[Lani]

Interesting post on Royal Albatross discussion - posted 9 hours ago.

Iceberg A23a actual position
Date: Jan. 22, 2025
Time: 14:40 – 21:40 UTC
https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/news/goes-east-tracking-a23a-the-worlds-largest-iceberg
Scientists are monitoring A23a closely due to concerns that it may collide with South Georgia Island, potentially threatening a delicate ecosystem which is home to penguins and seals. Satellites play a crucial role in tracking its journey as it travels through the icy waters surrounding Antarctica.

[Lani]

Serene GLG really doesn't mind the waiting. Her patience keeps us grounded. 💕



Some nest material for GLG, thanks Sharyn

[Lani]

1/27 - Royal Albatross 
Ranger Sharyn Broni ~ Hatching Update: Jan 26
Photo 1 - The Signal Station Trig egg now has 3 star pips as of Sunday midday

Further Hatching Update: Jan 27
Photo 2 - Overnight the chick has opened up the shell creating a hole about 5cm x 3cm

Image Credits: DOC
http://AllAboutBirds.org/Albatross

[Lani]

Kia ora koutou(hello everyone)

The Royalcam nest.
The Royalcam chick has hatched!!!

Weighing in at 286g we will be tracking the chick’s weight up until fledging in September before this time the chick should weigh at least 7kg.

Currently GLG is on the nest RLK has been away for 14 days which is a long changeover.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/albatrosses/royal-albatross-toroa/royal-cam/rangers-work-for-royal-albatross/

The chick has been temporarily fostered to another nest where the egg has just started hatching and has had a fresh parent changeover ready to feed a new chick.

Where is RLK/A85?

The latest foraging trip of RLK/KA85 started out much closer to Pukekura than his first tagged trip when he went around Rekohū. He has subsequently headed north and has travelled a minimum of 1800 km in the last 14 days but looks like he is heading back now.  RLK/A85 GPS track, a distance of at least 1800 km flown so far.


Signal Station Trig chick being sprayed with Avian Insect Liquidator in preparation for return to a nest. The chick will be bought to the nest once there has been a changeover.

[Lani]

Royal Albatross ~ RLK Is Back After Being Gone Two Weeks! 💕 1.29.25 video by Lady Hawk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c16jsGzxvn4

Jan 28, 2025
GLG has been incubating a dummy egg for the past few days as the SST chick is hatching. The rangers keep the hatching eggs in a incubator during the entire process to protect against fly strike. She has been on the egg for 14 days! RLK is seen walking up to her and they have a sweet reunion with allopreening on another.

GLG gets up at 03:37 for the changeover and she moves off the egg and begins her gardening. RLK goes right on the egg to continue incubating it. GLG does quite a bit of gardening around the nest before she leaves heading off to the left. The SST egg has hatched and is right now being kept in a foster nest.  From Sharyn Broni - " A chick will be bought to the Signal Station Trig nest when we have one ready. The foster neat cannot be left on a dummy egg and their own chick is still a little way off hatching. I hope to have further news later in the day." Thank you for watching!! Video captured & edited by Lady Hawk

RLK greets mom GLG 

[Lani]

Royal Albatross ~ RLK Meets His New Chick! 🐣 Precious Bonding Time With Dad! 💕 1.30.25
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWhN4IPcW-s

Jan 29, 2025
The wait is over! The SSTrig chick of RLK & GLG has hatched and is now introduced to Dad RLK on the nest! What an absolutely beautiful moment to see this tiny white fluffy chick meet Dad and be placed underneath him (and note the small white bag!!) RLK is beside himself with excitement and he is enamored with his chick. He could not sit still & kept getting up to touch and look at this new life ♥

The SSTrig chick hatched on January 28th 2025. The chick was fostered to another nest to get fed from a parent that was on a dummy egg (there own chick was hatching in the incubator) From Sharyn Broni - "Yesterday the chick weighed 400g in the morning and 365g later in the day. Its tummy was very full in the morning so had not been feed by the afternoon weigh. The chicks weight is back up to 405g this morning. The dad at the foster nest has fed it well and have their own chick today now. The chick will be weighed twice a day until it is 7 days old. Then once a day for the following week. After which weighing will be weekly, typically on a Tuesday."

Happy day for GLG and RLK and SSTrig chick!💕 Mum GLG is going to get a wonderful surprise when she returns! Thank you for watching!

Video captured & edited by Lady Hawk

Dad RLK's first day with SSTrig chick

[Lani]

Weigh Time for SST chick as Dad RLK watches


Weighing in at 286g on hatching day and now at 400g on day 3, we will be tracking the chick’s weight up until fledging in September. Before this time the chick should weigh at least 7kg. https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/albatrosses/royal-albatross-toroa/royal-cam/track-the-chicks-weight/

Comparisons of average male and female chick weights and all the past Royalcam chicks are on these graphs also.

We will weigh the chick twice a day for the first week and once a day, typically in the morning for the second week. After the second week weighing will be once a week, mostly on a Tuesday, weather allowing.

During the first couple of weeks, we check the chick over for any issues such as food spills in the nest that can attract flies.

Read more about the work we do with the toroa here: https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/albatrosses/royal-albatross-toroa/royal-cam/rangers-work-for-royal-albatross/

Where is Mom GLG?
GLG has flown a distance of at least 450km in the last 3 days and is now off the coast of Christchurch/Banks Peninsula.

[Lani]

Royal Albatross - 2/2 Cross Fostering. (This is new for me)

Sharyn ~ Royalcam chick is not gaining as much weight as we would like to see.
We have a nest available that will feed the chick sooner.
This is a temporary move, and the chick will be returned to its nest at some point, possibly after a changeover here.
When mom GLG returns.

https://x.com/i/status/1885967958964605345

Cross fostering is a process where a chick not gaining weight in a nest will be swapped with a larger, fuller chick from another nest to get the smaller chick fed quicker by a parent. Toroa are accepting of other chicks prior to the end of the guard stage when there is a parent on the nest full time. This means less need for supplementary feeding which is better for the chick.

The rangers are wondering if finding the needed food is the reason they are traveling such a long distance away from the nest and taking almost two weeks before returning. The parents need to store more food in their stomach to provide nourishment for chicks.

Ranger Julia holding Signal Station Trig chick and Dad RLK