

f^/'W'^.. i/ '/a* , -lif 



SUBURBAN GARDEN. WITH AVIARIES. 



{I'lwtogiaph iulplmi by Mr. A. Coihuitw, Ediiibutj^h.) 



CHAPTER IX 



TUF EGG AND DKVHLOPMKNT OF THE YOUNG BIRD 



Bkfohk entering upon the siihjci't of nest- arreslcd at that |iiiint, and may or may 



ing and luitchinji. it will be well to give not he risumed and eonipletid. 



some account of the structure of an egg, "The ovary of a hen during or near her 



and to do this sini))ly we ]n-opose to trace laying season ])re.scnts an appearance 



the egg throughout its development. nnich like that of a cluster ol' Iruit [simi- 



The late Mr. Lewis Wright, the ablest larly arranged to a lameh of grapes, and 



of modern writers on ])oultry, gave in his varying in size ; of course, in fowls the 



" Jiook of I'oultry "' a luimber is much greater than in the 



The Egg and un)s\ c\i>licil accounl of case of cage l)irds|. 'I'iicrc are, strictly, 



lis Produc= ^1^^ structure of an c"" two such organs in cvcrv bird: but one 

 tion. 



and its dcvclo])mcnt into a i-cmains mcrcl\- rudimentary and unde- 



living chicis, from which, since tiic rcmaiks \elopt(l, the fertile one licing almost always 



arc c(iually applical)lc to cage l)irds, Ihc thai on the left of the spine, to which it 



following cxirai'ls arc taktn. is attached by means of the peritoneal 



" Kvcry animal, of whatsocNcr kind, is membrane. Hy !ln' o\ary the essential 



developed from the egg-form. or. as |)liysi- part of \\\r egg, which consists of the gt-rin, 



ologists (.■Npi'ess it. niinic (iiiiuKil ij' mil. and also Ihc yolk, is formed, each yolk 



I?ul Ihc m<idc of that dc\(lopment dilTcrs. being conlaincd within a thin and traiis- 



in one detail especially. In mammali.i i>arciil ovisac, comiccled by a narrow 



Ihc egg is retained throughout wilhin Ihc stem or |)ediclc willi llie o\ary. These 



body of the mother, which is its sullicienl rudimenlary eggs are of dilTcrenl sizes, 



prott'clion, and the de\ clopnu'iit is un- according to t he dilTireiil di'grec of devclop- 



inlcrru|)ted. In ovi|)arous animals, such mcnt, and during Ihc |ici'io<l ol laying 



as l)irds. the egg is enclosed in a. hard they are constantly coming to maturity in 



protecting shell, and at a certain stage of due succession. 



devclojimcnt extruded from the body of "" .\s the yolk becomes fully matured, 



the mother ; in this case dcvelo])mcnt is the enclosing membrane or ovisac becomes 



02 



