who's moving the eggs

[Chicken Steve]

I went out to check the girls and sure enough there were eggs in separate boxes. Later I go out to see if I have any more eggs and the two from the earlier viewing were moved all under one hen. Now how does a hen pick up an egg and move it out of one box to another box?? I didn't see it so I don't know ???

 

[cmclean]

I have seen my hen roll an egg using her beak from a neighboring nest to be under her.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

I think they can scoop them up under their wing. Someone posted on another thread that his broody he was trying to keep from being broody had 2 eggs tucked under her wing when he took the other eggs out. But I would love to actually see it.

 

[cmclean]

Clever girls!

 

[Chicken Steve]

Now these nesting boxes are off the ground about 14" three buckets with three on top of that. These eggs were taken from a lower box and spread out in the upper boxes. So the story of the eggs under the wings may have some weight. All I know is I didn't see it. I've seen two in a box almost daily. It's to close to Halloween to guess how those eggs got moved.

 

[DanEP]

My nest boxes are 2 rows of five with the top ones being about 30 inches off the floor. My last broody was stealing eggs from both levels and putting them in the top box on the far right. I had to mark the eggs I wanted her to hatch with a sharpie and take all the other eggs from her daily.One day while I was collecting eggs from under her one fell out from under her wing so that must be how she was moving them.

 

[Chicken Steve]

I have to guess that they're pretty tricky, they keep finding ways into the garden to my surprise. I would like to catch this on film so that I have proof of who the egg mover is. And just how she's doing it.