The following points highlight the two main phases involved in egg production in ducks. The phases are: 1. Eggs for Hatching 2. Incubation of Eggs.
Phase # 1. Eggs for Hatching:
Egg for hatching must be fertilised. A duck normally starts laying eggs at the age of 16 weeks. For the purpose of producing fertilised eggs, one drake (male) is used for mating with 3-4 ducks. During early periods of breeding this ratio can be one drake (male) to four females and similarly at older age the number of males is increased, since during these times the drakes are less active.
Drakes should be kept with ducks all the time. One month later (the time from which they were kept together), the eggs produced are collected for hatching. It is a mistaken belief that effective copulation can only take place in water. Mating is also successful on dry ground. The role of water in the vicinity is that ducks keep themselves clean and they keep their eggs at a place having correct humidity and temperature.
Phase # 2. Incubation of Eggs:
Ducks of the improved laying breeds are generally non-sitters. On a small scale, eggs can be hatched by a brood hen; duck breeds like Muscovy and East Indian breeds are good sitters. A hen can cover about 12 eggs and a brood duck about 15 eggs.
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The most common method of getting eggs hatched is by the use of incubators. The incubation period of duck egg is 28 days. The optimum temperature is 37.2 to 37.5°C and the relative humidity is about 65 to 70 per cent. In the incubator, eggs are turned at 2 to 4 hours intervals up to the 25th day.
On 26th day, they can be transported to hatching tray and no turning is needed afterwards. Ducklings are kept for a day in these trays.
The main problem that needs attention, while incubating artificially, is that shells of duck eggs have much larger pores. For this reason, they should not be stored longer before incubating. Stored eggs dry up and get infection of bacteria.
Eggs laid in low temperature hatch better than those laid in high temperature. More important is that hatched eggs should be kept in cooler condition prior to incubation at temperature below 20°C.
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Eggs laid during cold season show about 80% fertility; while eggs laid during hot season the fertility goes down to as low as 12 per cent. Eggs bf medium size show more fertility than eggs of small and large size. Shells that are small, large, pointed, round, greasy, chalky and thin should be avoided.