What Laid Me?

[~elizabeth~]

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Not a very good pic I'm afraid, but OH found a clutch of these eggs on the ground under a very tall oak tree today near Newbury. They are the size of a bantam egg (1 1/2" long), round in shape but otherwise similar to a duck egg in colour, but the intriguing thing is that the chicks had emerged from the side of the egg, not the end, (which is a clue ).

 

[OEH]

Is it by any chance some sort of reptile?

Or on a very different track a bird of prey?

 

[OEH]

rather big for a native reptile, but I keep on being drawn to tortoise............ :unsure:

 

[~elizabeth~]

Well, let just say that if it had been twice the size, it would be just right for a heron, as the colour and aperture are right for this species, and had been discarded as a batch from a nest in a tall tree; the only thing that's inconsistent is the small size :unsure:

We've posted it on a british bird forum, no one's come up with anything there yet. :wacko:

 

[Karen-Coral]

Yet again another very interesting topic title....95 views in such a short time.. Lol

 

[masta]

Yet again another very interesting topic title....95 views in such a short time.. Lol

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anything getting "laided" always catches the eye

(w00t)

 

[~elizabeth~]

Yet again another very interesting topic title....95 views in such a short time.. Lol

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anything getting "laided" always catches the eye

(w00t)

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:lol:

No one else going to hazard a guess?

 

[zilloot]

OMG not a snake? (w00t)

 

[~elizabeth~]

OMG not a snake?  (w00t)

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That would be worrying, it would have to be a very big snake. (w00t) :sweating:

I'm sure the eggs hatched naturally, as there is crazing on the inside which you get when the chick is pecking and turning inside the shell, and straight lines where it's chewed it's way through, so I don't think they were pecked out by a crow. Birds with very long bills hatch like this, which is why a heron(like) bird is a good candidate.

In theory we don't have any small herons in this country but then I found this article Little Egret just off A4, which is very close (as the egret flies) to where OH found the eggs. (w00t)

 

[Janimal]

The Egret would certainly fit the bill Elizabeth....I Was going to suggest a wading bird perhaps till I saw this....a Redshank or Oyster Catcher... or even a Quail...

very interesting....

 

[~elizabeth~]

very interesting....

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Glad someone else thinks it is - was feeling just a tad like an anorak :b They are such beautiful birds, we're quite excited at the prospect of seeing some, or possilbly having them hearabouts soon as the complexes of gravel pits and tall poplar trees sound like egret heaven. We measured the eggs, they fit the dimensions of an egret egg exactly.

Little Egret facts

Little Egrets in Southend

 

[05whippet]

What a beautiful bird!!

It would be lovely if they were local to you and you caught a glimpse.

 

[Janimal]

and judging by that photo...they are just like whiter smaller versions of a heron..

how many eggs were there in the clutch as a matter of interest?

 

[OEH]

I was just reading on another forum how they seem to be becoming more common in the south of England.