It is essential that this process thoroughly removes the cuticle from every egg, to avoid variation in the batch. To equalize shell conductance within a batch of eggs, the cuticle is often removed by washing the eggs in a hypochlorite solution. In commercial duck incubation, variable cuticle thickness negatively influences hatchability. The cuticle - thicker on duck eggs than on those of the chicken - is a waxy, protein-rich layer that covers the pores of the egg shell, limiting the diffusion of water (= weight loss) and the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen.
These features, the shell, porosity and cuticle depth of Peking duck eggs vary not only between flocks, but also within batches of eggs from a single flock. The porosity or conductance of the shell depends on the structure and density of the pores and shell thickness, including the cuticle. Peking duck eggs that weigh more than 100g are not exceptional. Finally, fully grown duck embryos suffocate due to an inadequate supply of oxygen.ĭuck eggs differ from chicken eggs in size and shell porosity. These embryos die during the fourth week of incubation as a result of insufficient water evaporation (= egg weight loss) from the eggs. In duck incubation, the most common challenge is the high number of so-called ‘drowned’ or ‘wet-embryos’. The incubation of Peking duck eggs is often thought more complicated than that of chicken eggs, primarily because of unfamiliarity with the specific properties of duck eggs that have an impact on incubation.
0 kommentar(er)
