Eggs are sporadic at the moment. In the last week Jasmine has laid two, Cinnamon has laid two, Salmon has laid three and Smoke has laid five. Vanilla, Marmite and Spangle haven’t laid any eggs in the last week.
Then much to my surprise, while poop picking the run yesterday, I found a big sized egg in the wooden shelter. Speckles and Flame lay white eggs and Ebony lays beige eggs. The egg was beige so it must be Ebony’s egg and yet Ebony of the three girls has been moulting the heaviest.
I have never had a girl lay while moulting before. I don’t really count seramas as they moult a bit at a time but I have never had a girl lay an egg while having a proper moult. I wonder if this why Ebony has been shouting so much as they are often more vocal when about to start laying.
Eggs on an egg ramp
Ebony’s egg on the left, Smoke’s egg is in the middle and Cinnamon’s egg is on the right. I used these as a comparison because Smoke’s (and Vanilla’s) eggs are the biggest serama eggs and Cinnamon’s eggs are similar in size to all the other seramas.
Eggs on the egg stand
Ebony’s egg is on the left, Smoke’s egg is in the middle and Cinnamon’s egg is on the right.
Ebony today
Ebony doesn’t look like a girl who could lay an egg. I have stopped picking up feathers though so they are no longer dropping. I also noticed a nest sized dip in the corner of the wooden shelter the day before and also in one of the nest boxes.
Both Ebony and Flame checked out the nest boxes when I put them in their new positions after we finished the new shed two weeks ago. I took the photos below but then didn’t use them at the time.
Ebony in an nest box
Flame in a nest box
The other weird bit of behaviour is that over the last few days when Jasmine, Salmon and Cinnamon have laid Flame has been sitting on their eggs. I would see one of the little girls in the nest box and when the shout would go out and they were back in the run I would look for their egg and find Flame sitting on it.
I haven’t come across a moulting girl doing this before either. She isn’t broody because she isn’t sitting once I remove the egg but she just seems to want to sit on the eggs as they are laid.
These two girls are throwing up some very strange behaviour.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
They certainly keep you on your toes.
They certainly do!
Highly unusual. Flame is coming through the moult well, and is looking really good – no longer tailless. I have found the first feathers this afternoon, other than my silkies, who seem tto moult a bit at a time, like your seramas.
Flame laid again today and then moved to the nest box next door to sit on Jasmine’s egg while Smoke was sitting on Flame’s egg. It is really odd because Flame doesn’t seem to want to sit on her own egg but is constantly looking for a little girl’s egg to sit but once I remove the egg she leaves.