Candling turkey and duck eggs in a homemade kerosene lantern incubator

[HelenAbim]

I love their terrible racket!

You wouldn't like it if you haven't slept well and the screech woke you up. One of my guineas did that this morning. I just had to stand up from my bed and I still needed more sleep.

 

[HelenAbim]

Interesting stuff! I'm going to follow along, if you don't mind.

By the way, at just over a week (correct?) the turkey eggs may not easily show growth yet, depending on your light source and the shell thickness. Give them several more days before tossing as clear. Duck eggs too, for that matter.

You can follow along. You will have tips to give me along my incubation journey. The eggs were set just over a week ago. The duck eggs are really easy to candle and are developing just fine. The turkey eggs are very difficult to candle because the shells are very thick. I was able to use a torchlight to candle the turkey eggs and I can make out some sort of dark shadow in it which resembles that of the developing duck eggs. I had to tilt the eggs at an angle gently to be able to see this. It is possible to see the development, just difficult. I will candle again at either the 14th or 16th day to know which of the eggs to toss out.
I have a question though: can't I just leave all the eggs in the incubator then at the end of the hatch dispose of the bad eggs? Turkey hens and chickens do this all the time with no adverse effects.

 

[R2elk]

You can follow along. You will have tips to give me along my incubation journey. The eggs were set just over a week ago. The duck eggs are really easy to candle and are developing just fine. The turkey eggs are very difficult to candle because the shells are very thick. I was able to use a torchlight to candle the turkey eggs and I can make out some sort of dark shadow in it which resembles that of the developing duck eggs. I had to tilt the eggs at an angle gently to be able to see this. It is possible to see the development, just difficult. I will candle again at either the 14th or 16th day to know which of the eggs to toss out.
I have a question though: can't I just leave all the eggs in the incubator then at the end of the hatch dispose of the bad eggs? Turkey hens and chickens do this all the time with no adverse effects.

I don't bother candling until it is time for lockdown. If there is no bad smell indicating a rotten egg, it will not hurt to leave the eggs until the end. At lockdown, you will have no problem telling if the turkey eggs have developed.

 

[aart]

I have a question though: can't I just leave all the eggs in the incubator then at the end of the hatch dispose of the bad eggs? Turkey hens and chickens do this all the time with no adverse effects.

You could.
Broody hens do sometimes toss 'bad' eggs out of the nest.
Removing non-viable eggs gives more space to the hatching birds.
There is always the risk that one may be rotten and go boom,
but you can usually smell those.

 

[WVduckchick]

I agree. They can be left in. And in your case, they may be helping to stabilize the temperature. (or hampering?) I sometimes remove clear eggs to add new ones in their place (I have a separate hatcher for staggered incubations)

 

[aart]

And in your case, they may be helping to stabilize the temperature.

Valid point.

 

[HelenAbim]

UPDATE :
First off, thanks to everyone who has pitched in with suggestions, opinions,their personal experiences and what works for them. I know I am not alone in my journey. My family only knows it's hard work but they don't really understand why I have to do it. My mum prefers me to buy live birds and maybe just brood them but I don't want to do that in this case. A successful or should I say a true farmer looks for a way to grow his flock by ensuring superior genetics which he can track so I believe this is a learning curve for me.
I have somehow managed to get the temperature up to 38.5°C in the right chamber. The temperature in the left chamber hovers between 37.8-38.0°C. I think the further along the eggs, the more heat they also generate.
From my heart, I thank you all for the love and concern shown.

 

[lazy gardener]

A guinea in a laying season can lay up to 70-100 eggs. In their natural environment, they lay their eggs in the sand and cover it with sand. Most hunters look for their eggs and sell it to those who like the taste or use broody hens to hatch it. My aim is to try to breed the wildness out of them if I can. Any ideas anyone?

Helen, when a wild guinea buries her eggs in the sand, does she walk away and leave them? Or is that her nest, and she stays around to set on them to maintain the correct temperature? Or is it possible that the sand temp is stable enough in your climate during the hatching season that the eggs hatch without any further intervention from the hen? As the wild population is so successful, those hens must be doing something right!

As for breeding the wildness out of them: Wouldn't it be great if you could get an international grant/support to import eggs or chicks of the various species you want to work with? That would give you instant success, as well as a gene pool that you could work with. The only down side I could see from importation is the possibility of bringing in disease that you don't yet have in Nigeria. And, any birds or eggs you import would be very vulnerable to indigenous disease/parasites that you DO have.

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

You wouldn't like it if you haven't slept well and the screech woke you up. One of my guineas did that this morning. I just had to stand up from my bed and I still needed more sleep.

I had guinea roo that would stand under our bedroom window and screech unitl I got up and went out to say good morning....Then he'd go back to the barn..

 

[HelenAbim]

@lazy gardener, we have a sort of climate variation in Nigeria. The southern part of Nigeria is characterised by hot, humid and rainy weather and ever green rain forests while it gets sunnier and dryer to the north. The sun is harsher and less rainfall is received while the proximity of the north to the Sahara brings in the dry cold winds in late November to January. The guinea lays her eggs in the sand and covers with sand. The hot sand serves as the incubator. She doesn't stay around the nest although sometimes she will sit on a nest but that is quite rare.