Found an egg on my dock

[em_dawson]

Is it bad to take it out of the incubator and candle it too much? I would love to take a picture but I don't want to kill it!

There are no trees around my dock or cattails! It is just water!

It shouldn’t be a problem as long as you don’t have it out for too long too often. A quick picture won’t hurt, but maybe keep candling once a day from here on out unless you’re worried it’s dead.

 

[DogAndCat36]

How odd... I just did some research. Egrets nesting places are pretty high above the ground and tend to come from 2-6 egg clutches. They are also laid at around this time. You know what, that egg could really still be alive! An animal most likely snatched it off the nest and dropped it there by mistake. Something had to happen to prevent that egg from splattering on the ground, maybe God or destiny or some other almost tangible being gave you that egg? Or maybe a crush mayhaps?

Here are some links about herons:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/lifehistoryhttps://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/bird-cams-faq-great-blue-heron-nest/

 

[can't get enough chicken]

 

[em_dawson]

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It’s possible that could be the embryo’s eye! There’s definitely something in there.

 

[can't get enough chicken]

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The small dot is dirt.

 

[DogAndCat36]

The small dot is dirt.

Just don't clean the egg.

 

[DogAndCat36]

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Is the yolk sticking to the eggshell? That is a big indicator of fertility before you can see the veins.

 

[can't get enough chicken]

Is the yolk sticking to the eggshell? That is a big indicator of fertility before you can see the veins.

The dark part moves when I move the egg. So it isn't fertile?

 

[em_dawson]

I adjusted the color and lighting of the photo. You can’t see any veins right now but I would say there’s something there, whether or not it’s alive is a different story! But hang in there and just keep going with what you’re doing- the worst that can happen is that it doesn’t hatch, which it definitely wouldn’t have had you left it where it was

 

[can't get enough chicken]

I adjusted the color and lighting of the photo. You can’t see any veins right now but I would say there’s something there, whether or not it’s alive is a different story! But hang in there and just keep going with what you’re doing- the worst that can happen is that it doesn’t hatch, which it definitely wouldn’t have had you left it where it was

Thank you for your help! After how many days should veins be showing up for an egret?