The CahowCam2 chick is growing well, however its paternity is once again in question.
It is the 17th chick that Sampson the resident male has raised, and the second with his new mate after the first disappeared 3 years ago. The CahowCam camera installed in its burrow enabled the team to observe x-pair mating between this new younger female and other males prior to Sampsons return for the past 2 years, resulting in violent and perhaps even fatal eviction of the interlopers.
Local Genomics NGO BioQuest conducted a paternity test on Last year’s chick “Inna” and will do so again this year once we obtain blood samples before it fledges.
Stay tuned for a talk where the “Who’s the Daddy” results will be revealed and how this genomic population may re-write what is known about the breeding behaviours of this once thought to be monogamous species.
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