Does temperature and/or humidity impact the sex of your chick?

[cheerfulchicken]

When we hatched eggs recently, we had some difficulties maintaining the humidity towards the end of the hatching process. We were told the unstable humidity could have caused us to have more males. In our case we ended up with 4 cockerels. Just wondering is this a myth or has anyone had similar experiences?

Thanks for any help.

P.S. We used a Brinsea Octagon 20 Advance Automatic Egg Incubator without the humidity pump.

 

[feedman77]

As far as I know the temp/humidity only affects reptiles.

Chicken eggs are determined at conception.

I use same incubator what problems dif you have with humidity.

 

[cheerfulchicken]

Starting Day 19, we couldn't maintain the humidity to stay above 60%.

 

[feedman77]

What I did with mine was to take a towel push it into the water channels cover the bottom with the rest of it and notched the corners so as to not block vent holes. Then soak it completely with warm water.

Kept my humidity at about 80 percent for total lockdown.

When eggs started hatching might even have hit 90

 

[dheltzel]

The sex of birds is determined at conception, like humans. It's conceivable that male chicks could be more tolerant of the humidity variations and more females died, but the temp or humidity will not change the sex.

I bought 6 Ameracauna chicks last fall and every one was a cockerel. Statistically, there is only about a 3% chance of that happening, but it's not 0, and so probability says it must happen sometimes, and it happened to me. I'm pretty sure that chance is at work for you, you just lost that gamble.

 

[cheerfulchicken]

Thanks everyone for the information. We will have to try hatching again and hope for some hens.

 

[michellewardley]

Birds are related to reptiles. feathers are scale extensions so I don't rule it out that environmental factors such as temp humidity or diet can affect the sex of progeny.

 

[Rowsdower]

The sex of birds is determined at conception, like humans. It's conceivable that male chicks could be more tolerant of the humidity variations and more females died, but the temp or humidity will not change the sex.

I bought 6 Ameracauna chicks last fall and every one was a cockerel. Statistically, there is only about a 3% chance of that happening, but it's not 0, and so probability says it must happen sometimes, and it happened to me. I'm pretty sure that chance is at work for you, you just lost that gamble.

My first hatch, 9 out of 10 were cockerels.

 

[kuchchicks]

Dont know how valid this is, but...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/a-drop-in-temperature-can-change-the-sex-of-chickens-1238516.html

 

[chickengeorgeto]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperature-dependent_sex_determination

TSD ( temperature-dependent sex determination happens in turtles, crocks, and alligators. It is impossible in chickens.

With all the research in the last 100 or so years into scientific chicken husbandry don't you think that Tyson, Purdue, and the other poultry companies haven't researched this every way from last Sunday, considering that it could result in up to a 100% or greater increase in corporate profits?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperature-dependent_sex_determination