Avian Embryo
The avian embryo is amazing and exciting. In only three weeks, a
small clump of cells with no characteristic features of any single
animal species changes into an active, newly hatched chick. A
study of this transformation is educational and interesting, and
gives us insight into how humans are formed.
This publication will help you study the formation of the egg and
the avian embryo. It includes plans for two small incubators so you can build one. You can
buy small commercially-built incubators at stores selling farm and educational supplies.
Incubation procedures show you the effects of heat, moisture, and ventilation upon the
development of the chick embryo. You also learn to hatch other fowl such as turkeys,
ducks, quail, and pheasants. The publication describes how to observe and exhibit an avian
embryo while it is alive and still functioning, or as a preserved specimen.
Sections of this publication include:
•
Formation and Parts of the Egg
•
Stages of Embryonic Development
•
Incubating and Hatching Chicks
•
Constructing an Egg Incubator
•
Embryology Projects
Formation and Parts of the Egg
The avian egg, in all its complexity, is still a mystery. A highly complex reproductive cell, it
is essentially a tiny center of life. Initial development of the embryo takes place in the
blastoderm. The albumen surrounds the yolk and protects this potential life. It is an elastic,
shock-absorbing semi-solid with a high water content. Together, the yolk and albumen are
prepared to sustain life - the life of a growing embryo - for three weeks, in the case of the
