Amazing Bird Eggs—Observing Backyard Birds
Stan Tekiela, author of Backyard Birds: Welcomed Guests at our Gardens and Feeders, shares with us how truly amazing bird eggs are. All of the nourishment and water to support the growing chick are within the egg when it is laid. The unique design of the eggshell allows air to enter and exit yet prevents water from doing the same. An eggshell is remarkably strong but lightweight. The arching shape is the secret to its strength and prevents a sitting parent from crushing it. In one experiment, chicken eggs placed in their normal horizontal position withstood more than 90 pounds! The same eggs placed in an atypical vertical position were only able to handle 50 pounds. Female birds can produce only one egg per day or every other day during the nesting season. The first day a mother bird is ready to lay an egg, she sits on her nest and produces the egg in a quick process of a few seconds to a couple of minutes. Because...
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