Marking Eggs

[Hawkmaster]

I would like to know what people use to mark eggs they may put in incubators or just for identification purposes. Pens, pencils, markers or something else?

Which are hazardous, which aren't?

Constructive advice please?

[As The Falcon Her Bells]

We always used permanent markers, black, I also tought it would be hazardous, but we never had a problem with it (I know my eggs by heart tough, but Im sure I will soon loose them, Im up to 20 now).

[Hawkmaster]

I wanted to ask this question to a breeder today that has 83 eggs, but forgot.

Thanks Sara, I am surprised, I figured it would give the best writing result, but was worried about toxicity.

[As The Falcon Her Bells]

No its ok, we use it all the time on all eggs, I do however dont use it when I mark the chicks, I use non toxic acryllic paint.

[GregMik]

The breeder I know uses a pencil.

Greg

[As The Falcon Her Bells]

If you leave the eggs in the nest and they get rolled around against the gravel and eachother you will find that a pencil mark rubb out quick, in the incubator however a pencil is ok.

[GregMik]

His are only in the with the parents for 8-10 days.....It seems to work for him...I could see the numbers when they are pulled.

Greg

[Tim Laycock]

Carpenters pencil

[Hawkmaster]

Sara, what do you write on them and please tell more about marking chicks?

[As The Falcon Her Bells]

We soetimes leave them to they pip, so a pencil would be no good, and to be honest I dont think the led in the pencils is less harmfull then anything else concidering how sensitive bops are to led.
But whatever works for people.

[GregMik]

Pencils have graphite not lead......My Friend uses the room number then the order....He then uses colored markers to mark the chicks head as they hatch.

Greg

[Harris]

We soetimes leave them to they pip, so a pencil would be no good, and to be honest I dont think the led in the pencils is less harmfull then anything else concidering how sensitive bops are to led.
But whatever works for people.

I don't think that the lead in pencils is actualy lead anymore, I think its a Carbon composite. I'm pretty sure they stopped using lead years ago.

[As The Falcon Her Bells]

I just separate the 1st from the last egg by memorising them or marking them and then I can follow the inseminations in my book for the fertility of a certain egg. So I can see wich insemination fertilised the egg and at what time I did it and how much seemen and how fresh it was. So I can work out when I am most likely to fertilise the egg.
Example, I pulled 5 eggs from my gyr/saker female. no. 2 (That I had memorised) was infertile. When I looked in my book I had not done any insemination 12 hours before and 16 hours after the 1st egg was laid, so I missed the second one. I had no accsess to seemen. But I know why I missed that egg and can see it clearly in my book.
All the others I inseminated her closer to laying or just after laying the egg and they where all fertile.

Marking eggs in the incubator as well so we know who the parents are for the ringing of the chicks.
Chicks are marked only because we breed so many and so that we dont mix them up with eachother.
ie, red head-gyr/saker from so and so
green head -gyr/saker from so and so
red bum- gyr-peregrine from so and so
etc.....

[Hawkmaster]

VERY interesting peeps, thanks!

[Altai]

If you leave the eggs in the nest and they get rolled around against the gravel and eachother you will find that a pencil mark rubb out quick, in the incubator however a pencil is ok.

I agree with this.
For eggs left with the falcon I use fine indellable pen and put the egg number and the first letter of the mothers name on the blunt end of the shell. ( I might move eggs between females). On the blunt end the bouble egg shell membrains are seperated by the air gap,. reducing the transmission of toxins to the egg contents.

Also it can be usefull to note that the first egg is usually the darkest and the last the lightest in colour.

[Zappa]

just u se a permanent marker , this solves it all....:supz: