B&W Jungle first clutch help

[Dmnted]

Thanks for the info Waruikazi.
I know that temperature of eggs increase toward the end of incubation however I had no idea they could go up as high as 36 degrees.
I have read that there is evidence that reducing the heat slightly during this time is beneficial.
Does anyone do this ?

The probe is actually for a thermometer and not controlling a heat source. (typical me confusing everyone again)
I am measuring temps on each side of the clutch, one next to the heat source and the other on the opposite side to ensure the entire clutch is in an acceptable range. (29.5 to 32)
The recubator / exo terra incubators have a built in temperature control however it is not accurate and temps are measured at the top of the incubator. This is why I have been measuring temps in the egg box.

 

[moosenoose]

I've enjoyed this thread also Thanks for sharing and good luck. I'm looking forward to seeing some pics of the bubs

 

[damo77]

Been regularly checking back in to catch any updates. Any news??

 

[whyme]

I've got some jungles cooking in one of these incubators. I set the temp to 35, I put the eggs on peat moss, uncovered, and put a container of water at the bottom of the cooker. I've got 5 eggs in each (4) container, and after 37 days the eggs are perfect. I think you need to uncover the eggs. The temp is hard to monitor because of the fan, but I found hanging a mercury thermometer from the middle of the ceiling gives you a good reading, or hang your probe about 3.5in down from the middle. Temp should be around 31 with the unit set at 35 and fan on high. Hope this helps.

 

[Sel]

Hey Dmntd

I cant believe its baby jungle time already! Looking forward to the pics.

Your incubator sounds like a nightmare! Good luck !

 

[Dmnted]

Hi Whyme, thanks for the advice! Things are going well at the moment so I am reluctant to change anything this far in.
Hi Sel, time does fly and thanks for the well wishes !

DAY 36:
Over the past few days, eggs on the warmer side of the clutch have started to collapse in a little.
Humidity is still at 99% so I don't think it is a humidty issue.
I am aware eggs start to collapse a little before they PIP however I have heard varying timeframes (anywhere between 2 - 14 days)

The one egg which has appeared to have gone bad and is still attached to the clutch has minimal mould growning on it and from what I can see, it has had no affect on any surrounding healthy eggs.

In preparation for the little ones, I built a hatchie rack with 20 x 4.25 litre starmaid tubs over the weekend. Temps at the rear of the tubs reach 29.4 degrees which should be fine for hatchlings.

Photo's of how the eggs currently look and the hatchie rack attached.
The eggs towards the bottom of the photo are on the warmer side and as you can see, they have now started to collapse.

 

[nagini-baby]

great read!

 

[damo77]

Great Rack
Fingers crossed for you. Hopefully all continues to go well. How many possibly viable eggs are there now?
Cheers
damo

 

[Dmnted]

Cheers Damo,

I could sit there all day counting and I keep getting a different number each time. For some reason my brain can't count a 3D object. :?
I would say at least 18 viable eggs.

 

[Dmnted]

Day 42:
Not too much has changed in the past week.
Mould one one dead egg has not spread to surrounding healthy eggs.
I have another egg on the warm side of the clutch which appears yellow in colour.
It hasn't dimpled or defalted but doesn't look good. It doesn't have a lot of surface area above the vermiculite because the weight of the clutch has sunken the entire clutch a little.
I have removed a little of the vermiculite surrounding it.

Humidity is still at 99% however I have noticed temps have increased around 1/2 a degree on both sides of the clutch with no change to the incubator temps.
Hopefully not long now! :|

 

[cwebb]

This is a great thread. im very excited to see the outcome, maybe even buy a hatchie? Will keep checking in. best of luck

 

[Dmnted]

Thanks cwebb!

DAY 50:
Some more of the eggs have started to collapse/dimple.
Humidity is still at 99% however the eggs still feel a little hard, especially in the areas wher they have collapsed/dimpled.
I have no idea how they are supposed to feel so with temps and humidity the way they are i'm soldiering on!

The photo shows how they look right now.

 

[damo77]

How sad is my life. I got excited when i saw there was an update. I wish I could add something useful but being a total newb I am not much use. Keeping my fingers crossed for them though.

 

[Marzzy]

What is todays update ? Cant wait to see the outcome Hopefully you end up with a few.
Goodluck

 

[veenarm]

I've got a clutch of jungles cooking now, only been about 3 days in incubation so far, only minor dimples. There were 2 major bad eggs when laid and they were easily removed. But the rest were clumped together.
99% humidity and tempts between 29.5 - 31.5 consistently, so will see how we go! my girl was 3.5/4 years old and lid a clutch of 14 (12 possible fertile).

 

[Dmnted]

Damo, I wish I had some more exciting news.... hopefully not long now.
Thanks Marzzy..nothing new today however if all goes well you will see photos in the next two weeks
Good Luck Veenarm, hope everthing goes well !

 

[veenarm]

Not really, I opened it today and its starting to smell a little (but can't tell which egg yet)...
I re-candled, and it seems only about 50% have veins so the other 50% are probably infertile, the main culprits the ones on the bottom, which have taken a little moisture and I think will go bad...
Problem is - I go away for 1 week today, and won't be back until 22nd to check on them, so hoping that if they do go bad, they go bad slowly and don't affect the good eggs... :\

 

[Dmnted]

Hi Veenarm, I've been advised not to candle too often because it may cause problems.
3 infertile eggs in my clutch took about 2 weeks before they got to a state where I decided to remove them.
Having said that. I have had another egg go bad and I decided to leave it. It has grown mould but hasn't affected any of the healthy eggs around it after a few weeks.

DAY 55:
No changes sice my last update. Humidity is still at 99% and eggs still feel hardish like they were on day 5.
Frigging hell, hurry up and pip already !!!!

 

[hugsta]

Hi Veenarm, I've been advised not to candle too often because it may cause problems.
3 infertile eggs in my clutch took about 2 weeks before they got to a state where I decided to remove them.
Having said that. I have had another egg go bad and I decided to leave it. It has grown mould but hasn't affected any of the healthy eggs around it after a few weeks.

DAY 55:
No changes sice my last update. Humidity is still at 99% and eggs still feel hardish like they were on day 5.
Frigging hell, hurry up and pip already !!!!

Interesting comment, what problems does candling too often cause? Do you have any links to any info or the like on this? Never heard of this so would be interested in reading up about what problems it may cause, not that I candle very much at all, just curious.

 

[Dmnted]

Hey Hugsta, I have no idea why candling too often may be bad and wish I could give some evidence to support it!
I have searched the internet to the end of the earth and can't even find any studies on it.
My advice came from Brian from stakebytes via twitter.
I asked if there was any issues with frequently candling and the respone led me to believe there may be.
I think he said " I personally wouldn't candle more than once every few weeks, no need for any more!"
The only thing I can possibly think of being negative is heat from the light however, that shouldn't be a problem with a low wattage led light?
What are your thoughts ?
I feel like candling my eggs every day right now looking for movement because some of the eggs feel quite hard despite humidity.
I have candled them tonight and most eggs have thick veins so I assume things are on track.....?

DAY 56:
Something interesting has happened over the past 48 hours.
I have two temp probes sitting on each side of the clutch and without any change to the incubator, i have noticed the temps have climbed by about 1 degree each side (from 31.5 to 32.4 on one side and from 30 to 30.9 onthe other)
It appears as waruikazi mentioned that the eggs are now starting to produce their own heat.