No Success In Attempt To Hatch Notornis Eggs

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28480, 9 January 1958, Page 7

No Success In Attempt To Hatch Notornis Eggs

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, January 8.

The attempt to, hatch notornis t|gs taken from Takahe Valley la Fiordland last month was not •uccessful, said the Controller of the Wildlife Branch of the Internal Affairs Department (Mr H. D. KeEy) today. Of the four eggs removed, two were found to be infertile and one underwent partial development only. The fourth, though reached a stage where it was possible to hear the chick chipping inside the' egg, failed to hatch.

Although the result had been a disappointment this season, said Mr Kelly, it had been recognised from the beginning that success would not be certain at the first attempt and that many difficulties would be encountered.

“The result is analagous to what takes place in the natural environment of the bird,” said Mi Kelly. “Research has revealed that the percentage of infertile eggs is considerable in this species, but there is no known way of testing infertility in freshly laid eggs, and the normal risk of including some infertile ones had to be taken. “Research has also disclosed that some embryos die in the egg for reasons as yet unknown. Only one breeding pair out of five successfully rears a chick in the natural habitat, and the failure to hatch one chick from only two eggs, in artificial circumstances, is not significant.

“An investigation will be made as to the cause of the deaths of the two embryos, and this should throw some valuable light on the natural cause of such failures, and assist in future experiments.

“The late laying season, which was caused by heavy snowfalls in October and November, may have had some bearing on the survival and fertility of the eggs,” Mr Kelly said.