Some cam watchers have written in to ask if the parents would help the chick break free when it has difficulties hatching. Most biologists would say no, that the parents will not help. But some recent studies say that's not always true.
The hatching process is a mysterious activity, and ornithologists are still making new discoveries about the complicated transition a chick goes through to free itself from the protected world of the shell. The egg provides for all the needs of the chick and is in fact a tiny center of life for over a month, but once hatching begins, the chick must make a difficult and exhausting break from its home.
To learn more about the latest discoveries concerning the hatching process, check out this interesting International Wildlife magazine article called "The Great Escape."