Urgent! help estimating when eggs will hatch

[mjanderson437]

We have semi wild mallard ducks on our ponds. They are not tame to your hand, they just grace our ponds with their presence. Anyway my brother in laws aggravating dog found a nest and has been snacking on eggs we discovered when he ran thru the yard with an egg in his mouth yesterday. So I promptly removed the last 6 eggs and put them in my incubator. I got the bright idea to look in the egg he cracked yesterday and the poor little duck was already formed and feathered! Any idea how far along in development that may be so I can anticipate when they might hatch?

Right now I have 26 chicken eggs in the same bator that I just set on Tuesday. I do have a LG still air to use as a hatcher and I can move them to it late Friday, early Saturday if needed.

ETA: we bought these ducks, they are not true wild mallards. They are not hand tame, however, they live their lives on 7 acres of ponds and the surrounding land. They are not penned, pinioned etc.

 

[mjanderson437]

Anyone???

 

[Amiga]

I am not a hatcher, but duck eggs take around 28 days, sometimes a few days longer.

If the duckling was already formed, I'd guess within a week the others - if still viable - might begin to hatch.

 

[ChicagoDucks]

Next time you candle one of the mallard eggs, snap a photo to share! We might be able to tell how close to hatching the eggs are based on the size of the embryo and air cell.

It sounds like they are pretty far along. If they are still viable, they'll probably hatch long before your chicken eggs. If you hear "peeping" and see the eggs moving, you may want to move them into your hatcher right away. Remember that duck eggs need a higher humidity than chicken eggs for lockdown.

Good luck! I hope you're able to hatch those ducklings.

 

[mjanderson437]

Thanks, me too! I just hatched 7 eggs from a nest that got flooded by the water level increase in the pond after 5 days of rain. They hatched Monday and so far are doing well. I guess I'll get the hatcher ready and keep a close eye on these guys for the next few days. Hopefully I'll have as good results as the first time.

 

[jdywntr]

What exactly is a "semi wild" mallard?

Interfering with wild mallard nests, regardless of how good the intentions are, is illegal. As they, their nests and eggs are protected by the Migratory Bird Act.

I am not trying to cause an arguement but just stating fact.

 

[Winterose]

What exactly is a "semi wild" mallard?

Interfering with wild mallard nests, regardless of how good the intentions are, is illegal. As they, their nests and eggs are protected by the Migratory Bird Act.

I am not trying to cause an arguement but just stating fact.

ETA: we bought these ducks, they are not true wild mallards. They are not hand tame, however, they live their lives on 7 acres of ponds and the surrounding land. They are not penned, pinioned etc.

What exactly is a "semi wild" mallard?

Interfering with wild mallard nests, regardless of how good the intentions are, is illegal. As they, their nests and eggs are protected by the Migratory Bird Act.

I am not trying to cause an arguement but just stating fact.

If you read the OP first post fully they bought the ducks and just havnt tamed them

 

[jdywntr]

If you read the OP first post fully they bought the ducks and just havnt tamed them

OK. I actually read it yesterday but didn't reply and didn't reread after the edit.