title: Incubation temperature for ostrich (Struthio camelus) eggs.
abstract: The impact of incubation temperature on egg weight loss, embryonic mortality, incubation period, hatchability, and chick weight in 394 ostrich (Struthio camelus) eggs was studied. Eggs were obtained from 3 farms in Texas. Three incubation temperatures (36.5, 37.0, or 37.5 degrees C) with relative humidity ranging from 20 to 30% were used. Results showed that incubation of fertile eggs at 36.5 degrees C increased hatchability and incubation period in comparison with other treatments. The incidence of dead in shell and total dead embryos was increased at 37.5 degrees C when compared with 36.5 degrees C. No differences in hatchability, incubation period, dead-in-shell embryos, and total dead embryos were observed between eggs incubated at 37.0 or 37.5 degrees C. Neither chick weight nor egg weight loss at 7, 14, 28, or 38 d of incubation was affected by incubation temperature, but egg weight loss at 21 d was lower for eggs incubated at 37.5 degrees C than for the other treatments. Results show that the most effective incubation temperature for the ostrich is lower than the most effective incubation temperature for most bird species.
authors.affiliation: Poultry Science Department, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-2472, USA.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Siam
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Mady
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Cartwright
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000502:physiology; D047108:Embryonic Development; D006813:Humidity; D020310:Struthioniformes / Q000196:embryology*; D013696:Temperature; D013997:Time Factors