A cahow chick hatched live on camera this morning.

The egg, featured on the CahowCam, began hatching last night with the chick emerging at 8.30am.

Jeremy Madeiros, the chief terrestrial conservation officer, said yesterday that cracks had appeared in the egg on Nonsuch Island and the chick inside was “very active”.

Mr Madeiros added: “During a check of the CahowCam nest it was confirmed that the female adult was incubating the egg after taking over incubation duties from the male bird on February 19.

“It was also confirmed that the egg was in the early stages of hatching, with the chick actively moving in the egg and having produced a number of dimple cracks halfway around the large end of the egg.

“Once these cracks extend around the entire large end, the chick can then start working on kicking this out and hatching.”

He said the length of the process varied and that hatching could happen “anything from minutes to a couple of days away”.

Jean-Pierre Rouja, Nonsuch Expeditions team leader, said: “While monitoring the live stream yesterday afternoon, increasingly, every time the female shifts, the chick can be heard peeping from inside the egg.

“There have also been a few glimpses of the egg during which a pip or small hole seems to have started.”

Just after 8pm, Mr Rouja said the bird had begun to hatch.

The chick will be the fifth livestreamed from the same burrow.

Mr Rouja said 600,000 viewers watched the video stream during the last nesting season.

• To view the live stream, visit nonsuchisland.com