Surrogate goose tried hard-but where did the eggs go?

[mominoz]

Well I set 2 sets of Runner eggs under my broody goose. She sat faithfully for over a month, but the eggs are totally gone. I cleaned the nest, no eggs. I saw 5-6 2 weeks ago and at least 3 a couple days ago. I wonder what happened. The eggs were in the night aviary (fort knox), in her nest and the geese were very careful about staying on or guarding the nest. No outside predator gets in, (also a fenced and hotwired day yard surrounds this). Not a shell remained. The nest was quite deep, about a foot deep of straw and there was several inches for several feet around. I have had some mice get in but have found dead half eaten ones in the mini ducks pen and the Runners swim pond so don't think mice would eat the duck eggs. But I think a snake or something would leave a hole(and he'd have to dig thru the gravel bottom.) The aviary is 2X2 wire with hardware cloth 4 ft. around it. Maybe the eggs weren't fertile? She seemed very careful to sit on them. There are two goose hens and 2 ganders in the pen. They are a year old and so are the Runner ducks.
---Snake? We live in a rural and forested area and king and rat snakes abound I actually found a baby king snake in my mini duck pen , under the water pan when I changed it.I got it out . But the whole pen is 2X wire and 1/2 "hardware cloth. so how the heck the snake got in,unless it squeezed in the 1/2 space beats me.

 

[TennesseeTruly]

Sounds like a rat snake. They'll definitely eat them.

Laurie