Chook Me!

Can mallard ducklings in egg stage still survive and develop if you found them and they were cold?

without the use of an incubator.

Public Comments

1. they'll die if they haven't already. Eggs need heat and humidity to hatch. Depending on the species they need higher or lower temps. If the eggs were cold then they might be dead or stunted already
2. If they were left and cold, then they probably died or the mother duck knew something was wrong with the eggs. I found a mallard duck nest when i was a kid, a few days later returned to the nest spot only to find the mommy duck gone, so i took an egg, which was cold. Well lets just say, it was a rotten egg. And you do need an icubator if the eggs are fertile, heat from a lamp does not regulate the proper temperture.
3. If these are wild mallard eggs, you should have left them alone. Wild native birds are protected by federal law. No one is permitted to tamper with nests, or possess birds, their eggs, nests, or even feathers without an appropriate wildlife license. Don't assume that duck eggs found on a nest are abandoned just because the ducks are out of sight or not on the nest. Hens don't have to start sitting on the eggs until all of the clutch is laid, which can take several days. The eggs will be cold and dormant until proper incubation begins. If you want to hatch fertile mallard eggs or raise baby ducks - buy them legally captive bred.
4. I'd leave them alone. The mom probably just left for a little while and will come back. Duck eggs can survive for longer than other species without heat.