Holding eggs at 40 degrees.

[tallyho]

I just read this on the MPC website:

"A study in Australia (Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 11(4) 664 - 672) has shown that eggs stored at 40 degrees Fahrenheit (rather than the recommended 60 degrees) hatch out more females than males. That is surprising! However storing your eggs at colder temperatures before hatching doesn't actually change the ratio of male to female eggs. It has been shown that the male embryos are preferentially killed off by colder storage temperatures, while the female embryos handle the chilling better.

In other words, your overall hatch rate suffers if the eggs are stored at cool temperatures, but those that DO hatch are slightly more likely to be females. Unfortunately, there is no way to know which eggs will hatch males and which females, as you can read in the "related questions" below."

What do ya'll think...any personal experience regarding this?

 

[Rebel Rooster]

That's interesting...

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Have a link?

 

[tallyho]

Here is the MPC link

http://www.mypetchicken.com/backyar...te-eggs-that-will-hatch-female-H99.aspx?pop=t

I haven't done an internet search for the Journal article.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Australian Journal of Agricultural Research
Volume 11 Number 4 1960
Pages 664 - 672

Effect of temperature of storage and age of fowl eggs on hatchability and sex ratio, growth, and viability of the chickens

MW McDonald

Abstract

Fertile White Leghorn eggs were stored for periods ranging from 24 hr to 7 days in environments controlled at 40, 60, or 80°F and 70 per cent. relative humidity. The eggs were then incubated, and observations on numbers of incubator clears and dead embryos at 10 days and again at 17 days, numbers of chickens hatched, weight at hatching, sex ratio, weight of pullets at 14 days of age, and mortalities were recorded. Eggs stored at 40 and 60°F showed no effect of age of egg on number of clears, dead embryos, or number of chickens hatched. Eggs stored at 80°F showed a rapid fall in number of chickens hatched with age of egg before incubation, this effect being produced by increases in number of clears and dead embryos. Storage at 40°F produced a lower number of chickens hatched than at 60°F, owing to a higher number of incubator clears. There was no difference in sex ratio between chickens hatched from eggs stored at 60 and 80°F, neither departing significantly from 50 per cent. pullets. However, storage at 40°F produced significantly more pullets than cockerels, 54.6 per cent. of the chickens being pullets. Storage temperature and age of egg did not affect the hatching weight of the chickens, but when 14 days old, pullets from the eggs stored at 80°F were significantly heavier than pullets from the other groups.



To get the full report you would have to guy it for $25 at the bottom of this page.
http://www.publish.csiro.au/issue/1200.htm

 

[Loddie Da]

If I wasn't Pro-Life & a Vegetarian I would so do this...but to me this is just sexist chickie abortions

Let me know though if any of you come across a way to get more girls with out taking the life of the little boys.
(not looking to start a fight that's just my view & you can have what ever view you'd like)

I have herd that the health & diet of mother birds can play apart on offspring gender since the female parent in birds is the gender giver unlike in mammals, but I would have to dig that info up.

 

[UGAchick]

It is interesting, but it sounds to me like it is just a "scientific" way to kill the male eggs. I like this idea better than killing them once they hatch, but I am still not a fan.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

It only changes the ratio by 4.6%

 

[Whitehouse Quail]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperature-dependent_sex_determination

Sounds like if it happens 1/3 of the way through (when gender is determined) it works better. Maybe incubate for a few days, then quickly pop in the frige?