When larger numbers of duck eggs are to be hatched, large commercial incubators (setters) and hatchers are normally used. After spending the last 4 years hatching ducklings, I have kept accurate records of humidity (more recently using the recording software of the RCOM 20 Pro USB) and I have kept records of the weight of each egg at different times during the incubation period, in a search to find the ‘right’ humidity for duck eggs. 192 Old Country Road Weight loss is not proportional to the change in air sac: it will be fairly constant. Feed and water should be available for the broody duck and for the ducklings when they hatch. Cornell University Duck Research Laboratory At the time of transfer, the temperature of the hatcher should be set at 37.2°C (99°F) and the humidity set at 65% (88°F wet bulb). At about seven days after setting, candle the eggs and remove any eggs that are infertile (clear) or have dead germ (cloudy). Eggs that needed a lower humidity were placed into the 35%RH incubator for a few days to bring them back to the ‘ideal’ loss. Pekin duck eggs are kept in a setter for 25 days and then transferred on the 25th day to a hatcher where they remain until they hatch on the 28th day. So what is the answer? Candle and remove eggs with dead embryos. Humidity is controlled in order to prevent unnecessary loss of egg moisture. During the last three days (the "lock-down" period), the humidity level should be increased to between 70-80%. Email: ducklab@cornell.edu, COVID-19: The AHDC is open. Weight loss can also be used as a guide. When we first got our Welsh Harlequin ducks, I was just looking for a nice little backyard flock. Humidity Control. Dutch Vet Tour Helps British Farmers Cut Antibiotic Use. Check frequently to make sure the incubator is working properly the first day, and continue checking thereafter at least four times a day. Reply. Use a soft (e.g. Eggs are automatically turned while in the setter (usually hourly). Set the temperature at 37.5°C (99.5°F) and relative humidity at 55% (84.5°F on wet bulb thermometer). Duck eggs will hatch under a broody hen so surely 50% RH is the right sort of humidity to maintain? How Comfortable Are You with Duck & Goose Down Production? Vents should be opened to their maximum setting by the end of the hatch. Most small egg incubators (those that hold less than 40 eggs) have a well or two that holds water and generally don t have an easy way to measure humidity. There is an average loss of about 3% hatchability for eggs stored 7 days before setting, and about 10% loss for those stored 14 days. You also need to make sure that you provide enough ventilation so that the air keeps circulating. If eggs are stored for a while before they are set, they should be stored at a temperature and humidity level that will minimize deterioration of the egg. Select eggs to be set by carefully inspecting and candling them at the time they are put in setting trays. Eggs from Muscovy ducks hatch in about 35 days after setting. The following two tabs change content below. Humidity in Hatching. If the incubator is not already in operation, start the incubator and allow the temperature and humidity to stabilize a day or two before setting eggs. Tim is the founder of the poultrykeeper website and lives in Herefordshire, UK. As the duckling develops inside the egg there is a loss of water from the egg and an increase in the size of the air cell. Eggs that needed a higher humidity were placed into the 65%RH incubator for a few days, then re-weighed, they were brought back, closer to the ideal weight loss line on my graph. For a small number of eggs, storage in a cellar may suffice. At 25 days after setting (Pekin eggs), the eggs are transferred to hatching trays, and if eggs are hatched in a separate machine, moved to the hatcher. The conclusion of what humidity to use to hatch duck eggs was that it varies although, the humidity requirement for most of the duck eggs I hatched during my tests was at the lower end, closer to 40% – most of my failures were because the humidity was too high. Make sure the humidity is correct for hatching duck eggs. Common duck eggs should lose about 14% of their weight at time of setting by 25 days. Basic procedures and conditions for hatching duck eggs are as follows. The Incubator should only be opened up to spray the eggs or add water to the pans and towel to keep the humidity up. Some eggs lost weight far quicker than others so when graphed, weight loss against days of incubation, there were different lines, each heading for a different percentage weight loss at the end. At the time of transfer, the temperature of the hatcher should be set at 37.2°C (99°F) and the humidity … For duck eggs, the ideal weight loss is around 14% so when I monitor the weight loss of my eggs, I can see my most successful hatches occur for eggs that have lost around 14% of their weight. If the air sack is too big, your incubator humidity is too low. Announcements on service adjustments are posted on our, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists, on Long Island, Submission Guidelines for SARS-CoV-2 Testing. there is another way to estimate the correct weight loss and that’s by the age-old method of candling and observing the size of the air sac. Most of the change occurs from 18 days onwards. As moisture is lost from the egg, the air sack at the rounded end increases in size, causing air to be drawn into the sack. Apparently duck eggs are quite hard if they are not wet (duck hens will wet themselves in the pool before returning to their nests) from time to time, the chicks cannot hatch out. Learn how your comment data is processed. It’s fairly simple to rotate eggs with success and to keep the temperature at relatively the same level, but humidity is more complicated. Your email address will not be published. Reading relative humidity is one of the more difficult things to do in a small incubator. I find that keeping humidity in the incubator as close to 70% as possible gives me consistently the best hatches, with ducklings that hatch easily, cleanly, and fluff out nicely as they dry. Do not set eggs that are cracked, double yolked, misshapen, oversized, undersized or dirty. Home » Incubating & Hatching Ducks » What Humidity Should I Use To Hatch Duck Eggs? After a little head scratching, I realised that the porosity of the shell was coming into play. Remove ducklings from the hatcher when 90-95% of them are dry. Required fields are marked *. The ideal humidity level for hatching eggs is still being debated among experts, but many agree that it should not fall below 25% or above 60% between setting and three days prior to hatching. The problem sounds like you have very low humidity for ducks. Eastport, NY 11941, Phone: (631) 325-0600 There is another image of a chicken and duck egg at the bottom of our page on candling eggs that might also be useful to you too. The trickiest part of incubating is finding the right humidity levels. After spending the last 4 years hatching ducklings, I have kept accurate records of humidity (more recently using the recording software of the RCOM 20 Pro USB ) and I have kept records of the weight of each egg at different times during the incubation period, in a search to find the ‘right’ humidity for duck eggs. Have you ever tried drying washing on a damp day? He keeps Cream Legbar chickens, Silver Sebright bantams and hybrid layers for eggs, Abacot Ranger ducks, Brecon Buff geese and some quail. The ideal temperature for incubating duck eggs is 37.5 °C with a humidity of 55% (you can measure the humidity with the help of a wet bulb thermometer). Some even recommend spraying eggs regularly, others do not. Fax: (631) 325-1843 The nest box should be located in a clean dry shelter, bedded with suitable litter. Collect and store eggs at room temperature for up to 10 days. Ducklings would develop and die fully formed because they couldn’t pip and rotate around inside the egg in order to break the shell and free themselves. Your email address will not be published. Whenever possible, store eggs at about 55°F (13°C) and 75% of relative humidity. Each time I could get the weight loss of an egg to 14%, most of the time, they would hatch successfully. I hope these tips will help answer any questions you have about how to hatch duck eggs, and that soon you'll have your own adorable fluff-balls peeping and cheeping away! If you’re new to hatching duck eggs, here’s a few tips that helped me get through our hatch. Now you know a bit about natural duck egg incubation and how you can emulate that process when doing artificial incubation. The rate of this humidity loss depends on the humidity of the air around the egg. Since duck eggs are larger than chicken eggs, setting trays must be designed to accommodate their larger size. You need fertilized duck eggs, a proper incubator and an incubator thermometer. At 25 days after setting (Pekin eggs), the eggs are transferred to hatching trays, and if eggs are hatched in a separate machine, moved to the hatcher. Eggs from common ducks like Pekins require 28 days to hatch. As the humidity of the air decreases, the rate at which the egg loses moisture increases and vice-versa. 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