Strange egg cache

[Guest]

Archived from groups: uk.rec.shooting.game (More info?)

Walking up the lane (as you do...) I stumbled on a cache of eggs in the
grass. Perhaps 60-odd over an area about 3 feet by 1.

Now, I know almost *nothing* about eggs. These were in the main less than
25mm in diameter, speckled, and with a pronounced point to the pointy end.
Candidated are, I guess, likely to be pheasant or partridge. Interspersed
were a couple of much larger eggs, very much like domestic poultry, but
perhaps a bit rounder. Pale off-white. Some sort of Owl ?

Any idea what circumstances might have produced this ?

jd
--
John Daragon argv[0] limited john@<antispam>argv.co.uk
Lambs Lawn Cottage, Staple Fitzpaine, Taunton TA3 5SL, UK
(house) 01460 234576 (office) 01460 234068
(mobile) 07836 576127 (fax) 01460 234069

 

[Pete]

Archived from groups: uk.rec.shooting.game (More info?)

On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 12:15:56 +0100, John Daragon <john@argv.co.uk>
wrote:
>snippety snip<
>Walking up the lane (as you do...) I stumbled on a cache of eggs in the
>grass. Perhaps 60-odd over an area about 3 feet by 1.

Were they all together in 1 or more clusters or were they strewn about
a bit random like?

Were they warm to the touch?

Were they intact?

Pheasies quite probably if intact in clusters - two or three clutches.

Predators would leave a mess. Foxes eat them where they find them,
ditto hedgehogs, badgers, uncontrolled dogs, jays and magpies.
>
>Now, I know almost *nothing* about eggs.

Don't forget that it's usually an offence to interfere with the eggs
of wild birds. (I say usually as I don't claim any expertise of bird
egg legislation.)


From Pete

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Being eaten by a crocodile is just like falling asleep in a blender"
Bart Simpson

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: uk.rec.shooting.game (More info?)

Pete wrote:

>snippety snip<
>>Walking up the lane (as you do...) I stumbled on a cache of eggs in the
>>grass. Perhaps 60-odd over an area about 3 feet by 1.
>
>Were they all together in 1 or more clusters or were they strewn about
>a bit random like?
>

Random-ish, but possible to believe they'd once been clutches (apart from
the presence of two or three eggs that were a good 7-10 times (by volume)
as big. How many eggs does a pheasant lay at once ?

>
>Were they warm to the touch?

No.

>
>Were they intact?

Some. Not a lot. A couple had been obviously predated (broken shell,
missing yolk) and of the others, more than 50% appeared to be on the
cracked to crushed continuum.

>
>Pheasies quite probably if intact in clusters - two or three clutches.
>
>Predators would leave a mess. Foxes eat them where they find them,
>ditto hedgehogs, badgers, uncontrolled dogs, jays and magpies.

That's what I thought. We've been having problems with magpies ourselves.
Time for a Larsen trap...

>>Now, I know almost nothing about eggs.
>
>Don't forget that it's usually an offence to interfere with the eggs
>of wild birds. (I say usually as I don't claim any expertise of bird
>egg legislation.)

Thanks for the warning. Not that I would have done. I'll see if I can fire
up the camera and get the odd piccie.

jd

--
John Daragon argv[0] limited john@<antispam>argv.co.uk
Lambs Lawn Cottage, Staple Fitzpaine, Taunton TA3 5SL, UK
(house) 01460 234576 (office) 01460 234068
(mobile) 07836 576127 (fax) 01460 234069

 

[Pete]

Archived from groups: uk.rec.shooting.game (More info?)

On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 13:18:11 +0100, John Daragon <john@argv.co.uk>
wrote:
>snippety snip<

>>Were they all together in 1 or more clusters or were they strewn about
>>a bit random like?
>>
>
>Random-ish, but possible to believe they'd once been clutches (apart from
>the presence of two or three eggs that were a good 7-10 times (by volume)
>as big.

Hmm.

>How many eggs does a pheasant lay at once ?

Well, they come out one at a time but she'll lay a clutch up to a
dozen over a period of a week or so.

From Pete

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Being eaten by a crocodile is just like falling asleep in a blender"
Bart Simpson