FBCM Eggs, Day 14 Candling

[Buckeye Amy]

I've never hatched eggs that dark, but I find even fairly light brown orpington eggs make it a lot harder to see veining. So I wouldn't count on being able to see them in these dark eggs at all. Or being able to see a clear blood ring. But you can clearly see the air cell, and some amount of light passing through or not. We can work with that.

I think egg 7 may be your only one pictured that's developing. Day 14 eggs are getting pretty full, and with a slightly saddled air cell taking up some of the room, I can imagine it being full dark.

The rest of the eggs look like they're not developing to me. Not necessarily infertile, shipped eggs can have invisible damage that causes them to quit very early.

What I'm looking at is the quality and definition of the air cell. When there's no development, it starts to degrade, so it's a good indicator of life. Look at your two pictures of egg 3; on day 7 the edge of the air cell is crisp and there's a sharp color change from it. By day 14, you can still see where the edge is well enough to trace it, but it's a very soft gradient, almost the same colour on both sides of the line. This doesn't mean that the there was life on day 7, the air cell takes a bit to degrade so it's not a very quick indicator.

Thank you. I had read that, with dark eggs, as long as you can see an air cell and a dark mass you should be ok. With that in mind I’m going to wait and see what ends up happening in a few days (Sept. 10). The fact that the very dark “blob” never moved is interesting to me. I REALLY watched it for the slightest movement.

One I did not show is Egg 2. It is no darker than a good Welsummer egg and I can clearly see a moving embryo. The egg isn’t entirely dark like 7, but there’s a dark mass where the embryo is. So that egg has me really hopeful. I hope it makes it to hatch!

Thanks again for your input!

 

[Kiraeh]

Yeah, if nothing is smelling there's no harm in keeping them around to be sure, and then you know if you were right or not. Keep us updated!

 

[Buckeye Amy]

Yeah, if nothing is smelling there's no harm in keeping them around to be sure, and then you know if you were right or not. Keep us updated!

I will post updates.. and continue sniffing!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I'm sure my approach to candling would be much different if I hatched white eggs or had a high dollar egg candling machine.
https://www.agriexpo.online/prod/me-international-installation-gmbh/product-185203-127903.html
After about 12 days, I can guess what day the eggs are on but that's about it. Prior to that, I can't tell much.

 

[Buckeye Amy]

I'm sure my approach to candling would be much different if I hatched white eggs or had a high dollar egg candling machine.
https://www.agriexpo.online/prod/me-international-installation-gmbh/product-185203-127903.html
After about 12 days, I can guess what day the eggs are on but that's about it. Prior to that, I can't tell much.

I’m using the candler that is built into the incubator and I have to say it’s really powerful. I made a cardboard light shade for it that focuses the light into the egg and stops light leaks that mess up my eyes in the dark. I candle at 11:00 pm in a completely dark room.

I tried a very bright LED flashlight but it doesn’t do as good a job as the incubator’s light.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I’m using the candler that is built into the incubator and I have to say it’s really powerful. I made a cardboard light shade for it that focuses the light into the egg and stops light leaks that mess up my eyes in the dark. I candle at 11:00 pm in a completely dark room.

I tried a very bright LED flashlight but it doesn’t do as good a job as the incubator’s light.

I use an LED flashlight. With the lens removed, the egg fits down into the LED housing and the light doesn't leak. There is a totally dark closet across from the incubator room.

 

[ladybrasa]

Yeah, if nothing is smelling there's no harm in keeping them around to be sure, and then you know if you were right or not.

Ditto!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I have some concerns.

I should mention that this is my first hatch and that these eggs are pretty dark. I have numbered them from lightest to darkest. Egg 1 is about the darkness of a good Welsummer egg and 8 is dark as dark chocolate. I have not pictured all the eggs, just the ones I'm most concerned about.

I've been very diligent about monitoring humidity and temperature. I'm using a Harris Farms NR360 which is, in my very un-experienced but exhaustively well-read experience, a DARN GOOD incubator!

These are shipped eggs that arrived in pristine condition.

First is egg 1. I was initially thinking this one was infertile on day 7. The light shone right through. Now on day 14 I'm seeing a dark mass near the top. No movement that I can discern. I was going to toss this egg if it still looked clear but I've changed my mind.

View attachment 2319539

Next is egg 3. I'm seeing the "black blob of death". I stared at this clearly defined blob for about a minute. I can't detect an odor at all. I messed with the contrast on this photo to give it more definition. Thoughts?

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Another shot of egg 3:

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Here is the above egg 3 on day 7. I thought it looked infertile:

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Egg 4, I have NO CLUE what to think here. I could not see anything going on. No detectable odor (I am extremely sensitive to sulfur). No visible movement. The air cell looked decent though. It's a bit porous.

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Egg 7 frankly frightens me. There is no detectable odor, but this egg is DARK. It was not like this a week ago. What on earth is going on in there?

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Another photo of egg 7:

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Thanks for taking the time to look!

You took on quite a challenge incubating BCM as your first time hatching! They are the hardest eggs to candle. Best to go by weight, though try that next time as you are already 2/3 of the way in! Try candling the eggs from both ends. I find this works better with these dark shelled eggs You will need an extra pair of hands. If you only have one candler, use this on one end and your phone flash light or other narrow LED flash light on the other end.
Also the room you are in needs to be pitch black, I always end up in the closet!
You should be able to see some veining this way. The ones that look all black in your photos are the ones that are likely developing fine. Not sure about the other ones. Good luck!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Oh, and it is not to late to join the September Hatch a-long. You will find it under forums. Incredibly helpful people on there with years of hatching experience and a fun supportive group! I highly recommend!

 

[Buckeye Amy]

Oh, and it is not to late to join the September Hatch a-long. You will find it under forums. Incredibly helpful people on there with years of hatching experience and a fun supportive group! I highly recommend!

Thanks for your response! I have joined the September hatch-along. I stated in one of my earlier comments how I candle in a completely dark room using the built in candler, which is brighter than any flashlight I own.

I just completed my day 18 candling and removed 4 obvious quitters (eggs 1, 3, 5 and 8). The remaining 4 eggs are full of chick. So now I'm raising the humidity and we are in lockdown. Hatch day is late Thursday evening/early Friday. I'm feeling good at this point. I am VERY pleased that I have 2 very dark chocolate eggs in the remaining eggs. I am hoping to use any resulting chicks in my future breeding endeavors!