Horrific Passing: Lesser Kestrel Mom Feeds Weakest Nestling to Stronger Siblings. Discretion Advised

Viewer Discretion Advised: The mother lesser kestrel had four nestlings, but unfortunately, the smallest of the brood was struggling to get enough food to survive. The larger and stronger siblings were dominating and taking most of the food, leaving the smallest nestling at a disadvantage. As time went on, the situation became more dire for the smallest nestling, and it started to show signs of weakness and illness. Despite its condition, the larger siblings continued to push it aside and take all the food, making it even more difficult for the smallest nestling to survive. Eventually, the situation became so dire that the larger siblings even started to try to eat their dying sibling, as they were driven by their own survival instincts and the need to eat.
The mother lesser kestrel returned to the nest and she collected the dying nestling and took it to the side. Although it was still alive, she killed it before feeding it to its siblings. While this may seem cruel, it's actually a common behavior among many bird species, as it helps to ensure the survival of the stronger and more viable offspring. While this may be a difficult situation to witness, it's important to remember that in the natural world, survival is often a matter of life and death. The mother lesser kestrel was simply doing what she needed to do to ensure the survival of her brood, and in doing so, was following the instincts that have helped her species to survive for thousands of years.
These videos are meant to document the lives of wild falcons and other birds in order that we can
learn more for both educational & research purposes and serve as an aid for the species conservation effort. We do not set up/ stage or intervene. All the videos in this stream are documenting wild lesser kestrels.

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Clutch
1st egg: March 25, 2023
2nd egg: March 27, 2023
3rd egg: March 29, 2023
4th egg: March 31, 2023
5th egg: April 2, 2023

Nestlings
1-3 nestlings: April 24, 2023
4th nestling: April 25, 2023
5th nestling: April 27, 2023 (died May 4, 2023)

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