Beatrice Sizes Up The Emu Egg.....How Do I Get into this thing?

Beatrice is a female Black Breasted Buzzard - an Australian native raptor - that is a bird of prey.

 

They are Australia's third largest bird of prey.

Here, Beatrice has just demonstrated how these amazing birds deal with very large eggs (a emu egg) that are too big for her talons to grab and crush.

 

Instinctively, these black breasted buzzards know to find a small rock, then pick it up with their beaks, then throw the rock at the egg until it cracks open!

 

Normally it takes between 4 and 6 throws to break the (plaster cast) emu egg.

Beatrice got it in one shot today!

All black breasted buzzards know instinctively how to break open the gigantic size eggs of emus - too big to pick up or break with talons or beak.

They find a stone, pick it up with their beaks, and throw it at the egg until it breaks! This is purely instinctive behavior - it is not taught. Only one other raptor does the same thing - an African raptor who breaks ostrich eggs - even bigger!

 

Note : The emu "eggs" are realistic plaster casts - no real emu egg was harmed in this show at Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, Australia.

Done