The as-yet unnamed royal albatross chick, which is the focus of the Department of Conservation's ''Royal cam'', was placed in intensive care yesterday, Otago Peninsula Trust marketing manager Sophie Barker said.
The chick hatched on Saturday but was found to be fly-blown on Monday, having fallen victim to an Australian fly that laid live maggots, she said.
Doc staff cleaned and cared for the chick and placed it back in its nest, but it was moved to intensive care yesterday after it was found to have dropped below hatch weight, she said.
Ms Barker said staff were keeping their ''fingers crossed'' the chick would survive.
''Prognosis? Praying,'' she said.
''You become so attached to them. We have watched the egg incubating for about 80 days and then the chick hatching.
''Yesterday, there was a beautiful reunion when mum, RBK, came home and saw her chick for the first time.''
News of the chick's arrival on Saturday was met with excitement after its predecessor, Moana, shot to internet stardom last year.
Moana was the first chick to feature on Doc's Royal cam, and coverage of her progress attracted more than 600,000 views until she fledged, and flew away, last September.
Ms Barker said chicks faced a ''fraught'' first month trying to survive summer temperatures, pests and other threats.
''It is just nature and the poor chicks have a lot of challenges to deal with out on the headland, and the flies are just one of those,'' she said.
While the ailing chick recuperated, its parents had been given a foster chick that was moved after it had ''a problem'' in its own nest, she said.
Fostering chicks was a regular occurrence at the colony and helped increase their survival rates, she said.
Staff aimed to return chicks to their parents before they reached about six weeks of age, as the adult albatross would not accept returning chicks after that stage, she said.
Despite the ailing chick's struggles, the Taiaroa Head colony's latest breeding season was going as expected, Ms Barker said.
The colony's 36 nests had produced 34 fertile eggs, but eight embryos had died, she said. Another egg had been crushed by one of the parent birds, who had ''feet as big as someone's hand'', Ms Barker said.
Of the 21 chicks to have hatched so far, 20 remained alive. One which hatched last week had died of an infection days later, she said.
Another four eggs were still to hatch, she said.
The chicks' attrition rate was typical, but 90% of those which hatched were expected to make it to fledging, when they would fly away for between four and 10 years, she said.
