Air cells too small… day 26

[DuckDuckDragon]

Hi all,

I’m currently on Day 26 of incubating 8 Ancona duck eggs. This is my second hatch—my first went extremely well, but I had to constantly monitor and adjust humidity to keep it under 60%. This time, I decided to let the incubator manage humidity on its own, and it stayed fairly steady at around 60–61% throughout incubation.

Out of the 8, six eggs have made it to this point (Lost two on days 14 & 18). All six have internally pipped—I can see movement, hear peeping, and tapping. So far, so good… except I’m concerned that the air cells look too small compared to what I saw in my first hatch. They don’t appear to be the right size for Day 26, and I’m worried the ducklings might not have enough air to make it to external pip.

To help, I’ve made small safety holes (pin-sized) in three of the eggs. I’m now monitoring them closely. The humidity is currently at 75%, and I’m keeping the environment steady.

My main questions:

1. Is there anything else I can do at this point to support the ducklings, given the small air cells?
2. What can I expect from a hatch where the air cells are smaller than ideal? Are they likely to struggle more or need help hatching?
3. Should I consider lowering humidity slightly, or would that be risky now that they’re in lockdown?

Any experience, advice, or similar stories are more than welcome! I’d love to hear how others have handled small air cells this late in incubation.

Thanks in advance!

 

[DuckDuckDragon]

Here is a picture of an air cell from my last hatch for reference.

 

[DuckDuckDragon]

The one with the smallest air cell actually pipped at the wrong end (that explains a lot)! I just spotted it, but it looks like the pip happened a while ago. The membrane showing is already drying out a bit. One other egg has pipped correctly.