How many species can be hatched at once?

[Featherss]

My Animal Science teacher is planning to hatch quail٫ ducks٫ Muscovy ducks٫ and chickens all in the same incubator. Will anything be able to hatch with all of the temperature٫ humidity٫ and incubation period differences?

I told her I had fertile duck and bantam eggs٫ but would rather hatch them myself if this would lower hatch rate/prevent hatching.

 

[Dinoroar]

That sounds like a complicated hatch to manage. Maybe ask your teacher how they plan to manage humidity and turning eggs during the hatching. If it’s they have a plan and something they’ve done before successfully than you could make a more informed choice if you want to put your eggs in or run them separately.

 

[Yardmom]

When I have 2 species in the incubator I stagger the start time so that they all hatch near the same day. 4 species at once does make things more complicated.

 

[nuthatched]

Is your teacher aware that there are different humidities and incubation lengths for each species? It sounds like a recipe for dead chicks.

 

[Tonyroo]

That sounds like a bad hatching about to happen.

 

[Yardmom]

You mention that it is your animal science teacher. Is this a college level course? Is there a purpose, such as showing that the main differences between hatching different species is time of incubation? Has the teacher (professor) been teaching for several years and done the hatch for each class? I believe this hatch could be accomplished, but it would not be something I would recommend doing.