Although eagles still bring sticks and greenery to the nest, Thulane brings the prey for Emoyeni, seems, it is out of an acceptable period for egg's lying. Unless that will be again be a late clutch, as in the Nessi case.
Below please find BEPR suppositions.
https://www.facebook.com/notes/black-ea ... 9692219826
BEPR Update June 2016
Black Eagle Project Roodekrans·8 czerwca 2016
Dear BEPR observers & interested parties,
Photos by Ernest Porter, Garth Heydenrych & Brian Reynolds.
As the popular saying goes: ”A change is as good as a holiday…” Well, I’m not so certain when this extended eagle-holiday is going to come to an end, as quite frankly, the pair is now well overdue with their breeding season, which appears to have been scuttled.
There are a few possibilities that have crossed our minds during a chat with Garth Heydenrych, Joanne Meyer and I as to what the cause(s) may be as this behaviour is not usual for Verreaux’s eagles.
Our thoughts herewith:
1. Climate change – El Nino drought period,
2. Prey availability – quality of prey availability due to the poor rainfall period,
3. Nest reduction – unlikely, but a possibility
4. Infertility in the female – most likely cause
Infertility can be a real issue in that science indicate that eagles may breed up to the very end of their life span, and although we are only speculating what the age is of the female, reliable calculations indicate that she may be at least 35-40 years old, which is considerable for a wild eagle. In captivity eagles can really achieve greater longevity as there is generally less stress in that they need not hunt and or breed.
Of major concern is that during their initial nest refurbishment session during April, sporadic mating was evident that goes hand in hand with the refurbishment period, however, this did not produce any eggs…an indication that infertility may be evident.
In the least, I received some positive information from project member Dennis Dry, that during their Sunday 5 June morning session, both eagles brought many sticks and green leafy sprays, which is usually associated with a new breeding season, but so late in the year remains a bone of contention that we are all wrestling with. It is not clear however, if any mating was observed…
The best we can do is to not give up hope despite the odds of a breeding season materialising. Just observing this magnificent pair is enough of a privilege to have them in our midst…something that does not occur too frequently. .........
Chins up thus and all fingers and toes crossed…let’s see what transpires during the remainder of this month…
Yours in conservation,
Boudewijn van der Lecq
Black Eagle Project Roodekrans
