We are going to be getting 10 Welsh Harlequin ducklings from Metzer farms soon (8 females 2 males.) When they get older I want them to raise ducklings and lay eggs to eat. I heard that you can eat fertilized eggs if the female hasn't sat on them, but it would break my heart to eat an egg that could of been a baby. My first question is: would all the eggs be fertile if the males are kept with the females? I want them to be free ranged during the day and kept in a pen at night, I would have to keep them in separate pens at night and switch out which ones are free ranging if all of them would end up being fertile and put the ones I want to breed together in a third pen..... I really want to avoid that. I read that the eggs stay good for weeks without being refrigerated even if the female has sat on them, I also read you can do a float test to see if they are good or bad. So I thought maybe I could go out a couple times a day to put a date on the eggs and let the females lay their clutch and sit on them for like 2 days, then I could candle them to see if they are fertile or not. So what do you guys think? What do you do with yours?