A Small Egg
A Small Egg
An average-sized hummingbird egg is a small and delicate thing. After examining several hundred sets and records of many more I concluded that an abnormal hummer's egg was something unheard of.
However, on June 11 of last year, while strolling along the bottom of a heavily wooded canyon near Escondido, a female hummer was flushed from the low limbs of a small live oak. Closer investigation by my brother proved that her nest was placed on a small twig about five feet from the ground. “One fresh egg,“ was the first report; then, “O! Gee! Look at the runt!” And sure enough there was the smallest egg I had ever seen just partially visible among the yellow down and feathers which lined the nest.
The bird was secured and proved to be a very small Costa (Calypte costae), measuring about 3.40 inches in length.
After much speculation as to the possibility of blowing so small an egg I succeeded in making a fine specimen of it. It measured .29 x .21 inches and contained no yolk. The other egg was slightly incubated and measured .50 x .33 inches.
May I ask, has anyone else so small an egg. If so I would like to hear of it.
NELSON CARPENTER
Stanford University, Cal.
