Sexing eggs!

[ChickenCanoe]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/489146/can-anyone-sex-chicks-by-egg-shape
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/453551/sexing-eggs-experiment
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/179452/can-you-really-tell-the-sex-from-the-shape-of-the-egg

 

[enola]

No one means to hurt your feelings, but us old timers (50+ years of chicken keeping) know this is not true. If it was true, we would use the method, we don't like culling roosters any better than any one else.

 

[KirstieJG]

This is a link to the original thread where this idea was discussed and it got me researching and I found the article that I posted above.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/489146/can-anyone-sex-chicks-by-egg-shape/30#post_14756370


And...

I dont have an opinion on this which is why I want to find out. I'd like to find by research rather than hearsay and opinion if thats all right with you old timers

 

[WalnutHill]

This is a link to the original thread where this idea was discussed and it got me researching and I found the article that I posted above.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/489146/can-anyone-sex-chicks-by-egg-shape/30#post_14756370


And...

I dont have an opinion on this which is why I want to find out. I'd like to find by research rather than hearsay and opinion if thats all right with you old timers

By all means, go for it! It would have to be statistically significant numbers over several hatches by different people, to rule out the potential influence of incubation temperatures, hens that have a propensity to produce a particular sex, or other factors.

I'd join but my incubator is full of pointy turkey eggs.

 

[LBKS]

Well, there was at least one study, here: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1516-635X2013000300006&script=sci_arttext

Which leaves you with a 'sort of' answer (pointed more likely to be male, rounded more likely to be female) but with the caveat that they studied one flock source from the sound of it, for one variety (Super Nick), located in Turkey. So there is no proof that even what they found applies to other breeds/varieties, to other sources of the same breed/variety, and so on. And it wasn't a total all pointed eggs are male, all rounded eggs are female, just that the rounder eggs were more likely to be female and the pointier eggs were more likely to be male.

I thought the mentions about other species of birds where shape/size other factors are indicators of chick gender was interesting.

I'm guessing that because it's not a total smoking gun indicator the big commercial operations don't even bother checking shape. My take away is that given two eggs of equal cleanliness/shell quality/shell color/parent quality, if you can only fit one more in your incubator, take the rounder one. Then build a bigger incubator.

 

[rainbowhatchery]

I will take your word for that, I have never cut one open. I was always under the impression they hardened as they were coming out but never knew that for sure, guess I never really thought about it enough to ask or research it but I believe you.

 

[LBKS]

Oh, and here's food for thought: other species of birds developed the ability to tell gender by egg shape because there was an evolutionary advantage (per the study). Given that there may be some degree of it in chickens (but to a much less useful degree), it seems possible to breed it like any other trait. Take your round eggs, put them on one side of the incubator. Only keep the girls that hatch from those eggs. Take the pointier ones, on the other side, and only keep the males. After a few generations, do the shape index vs gender data collection on your flock again and see if the degree of significance has gone up. If I had the room for another project, this is probably what I'd try for curiosity's sake. Plus all the lovely data to analyze, talk about fun.

 

[rainbowhatchery]

I believe you, we dont butcher, never have so I have never seen an egg inside the hen and its just not something I ever thought to ask about. Its something good to know though, learn somethign new every day.

 

[scflock]

Well, there was at least one study, here: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1516-635X2013000300006&script=sci_arttext

Which leaves you with a 'sort of' answer (pointed more likely to be male, rounded more likely to be female) but with the caveat that they studied one flock source from the sound of it, for one variety (Super Nick), located in Turkey. So there is no proof that even what they found applies to other breeds/varieties, to other sources of the same breed/variety, and so on. And it wasn't a total all pointed eggs are male, all rounded eggs are female, just that the rounder eggs were more likely to be female and the pointier eggs were more likely to be male.

I thought the mentions about other species of birds where shape/size other factors are indicators of chick gender was interesting.

I'm guessing that because it's not a total smoking gun indicator the big commercial operations don't even bother checking shape. My take away is that given two eggs of equal cleanliness/shell quality/shell color/parent quality, if you can only fit one more in your incubator, take the rounder one. Then build a bigger incubator.

The only incubation I have ever had where I had a disproportianate number of pullets was my first run in the Brinsea. I found out by the second hatch that my temps were just a tad low, and the hatch was delayed, but I hatched 10/12 pullets/cockerels. I think it was a coincidence, but if I knew I could do that every time I would drop temps in a heartbeat

 

[KirstieJG]

So lets just see

I have three bantams; a white silkie bantam, and two black smooth feather bantam of unknown parentage, as well as a buff sussex which all hatched out of very evenly round eggs, i.e. no pointiness at all. They were picked from a mix of farm eggs at Godstone farm near where I live here in Surrey in the UK. The farm is a show farm which breeds lots of different types of birds and sells the mostly fertilised eggs for eating. They were all hatched on 1st April 2015. I will post some photos tomorrow.

I also set four ducks eggs, one of these was fairly pointy (They are from my own birds and didnt want to waste space in the incubator) which hatched at the same time, three of these are running around on their flappy feet, including the pointy one, but do we count these as they arent chickens?

I cant sex them yet but time will tell. This is only a few birds so if you want to add to this thread with your own experiment please do.

Please no more arguments about this, just experiments please