The chicks are back.
For the eighth year, the world can watch chicken eggs hatch via the Oregon State University Extension Service livestream.
The livestream started March 26 and will document the chicks as they hatch. The cameras will remain on until 5 p.m. April 2.
Faculty and staff at the OSU Extension office in Clatsop County set up cameras to bring the livestream to the public. Once the chicks hatch, they move from the incubator to a brooding pen where they remain until they are able to regulate their body temperatures, according to Lindsay Davis, administrative office manager for OSU Extension in Astoria.
The camera will rotate between the incubator and brooding pen until the chicks are ready to move into an outdoor environment. Once they’re big enough, the chickens go home with OSU Extension 4-H members, who care for them and show them at the county and state fairs.
“The chicks are well taken care of,” said Jared Delay, 4-H program assistant in Clatsop County. “After the chicks get big enough, they’ll be rehomed so that local 4-H youth continue learning about raising chickens, egg production and showmanship.”
Since the annual livestream launched in 2014, more than 80,000 people from around the world have watched chicks hatching on the OSU Extension website and more have watched on TV station websites.