EGGS AND HATCHING

TYPES OF EGGS

While most eggs are oval and have a camouflage pattern, there are variations. Eggs laid out of sight in dark holes, for example, are white. Gamebirds and owls lay spherical eggs, while wading birds lay pear-shaped eggs. Aerial species such as Swifts have narrow bodies so they lay longitudinal eggs. The pear shape of the Guillemot’s egg prevents it from rolling of the narrow cliff ledge it is laid on.

THE HATCING PROCESS

Chicks call to each other and to their parents from within the egg, helping to co-ordinate their hatching. They use a tiny “egg tooth” on the bill tip to break the shell and then struggle until they push the two ends apart.