Egg Incubation Its Effects on Embryonic Development in Birds and Reptiles

A recent rapid expansion in our knowledge of embryonic development in birds and reptiles has created a need for a book that comprehensively reviews and synthesizes data relating to incubation effects on the embryonic development of these two vertebrate classes. The contributors to this book aptly deal with these issues in logical parts. The first deals with the structure, shape, and function of eggs. The second examines the effects of the four main parameters, e.g. temperature, water relations, respiratory gas exchange, and turning, on the process of incubation. The third section deals with early embryonic development and the methods used to investigate and manipulate the embryo. Further chapters deal with estivation, megapodes, and oviparity.

This book reviews comprehensively incubation effects on embryonic development in birds and reptiles and presents the first ever synthesis of data from these two vertebrate classes. The book is in three parts. The first deals with the structure, shape and function of eggs. The second examines the effects of the four main parameters on the process of incubation: temperature, water relations, respiratory gas exchange, and turning. The third section deals with early embryonic development and the methods used to investigate and manipulate the embryo. Further chapters deal with aestivation, megapodes and oviparity. International experts in each field have contributed to this extensively referenced volume and it will be of great interest not only to research biologists, but also to bird and reptile breeders, whether in commercial organisations or in zoos.

Preface Denis C. Deeming and Mark W. J. Ferguson; 1. Maternal diet, maternal proteins and egg quality Harold B. White III; 2. Comparative composition and utilisation of yolk lipid by embryonic birds and reptiles Ray C. Noble; 3. Oviductal proteins and their influence on embryonic development in birds and reptiles Brent D. Palmer and Louis J. Guillette, Jr.; 4. Fluxes during embryogenesis Kenneth Simkiss; 5. Eggshell structure and formation in eggs of oviparous reptiles Mary J. Packard and Vincent G. DeMarco; 6. Shell structure and formation in avian eggs Ronald G. Board and Nick H. C. Sparks; 7. Physical characteristics of reptilian eggs and a comparison with avian eggs John B. Iverson and Michael A. Ewert; 8. Egg shape in birds Iain H. M. Smart; 9. The thermal energetics of incubated birds' eggs J. Scott Turner; 10. Physiological effects of incubation temperature on embryonic development in reptiles and birds Denis C. Deeming and Mark W. J. Ferguson; 11. Cold torpor, diapause, delayed hatching and aestivation in reptiles and birds Michael A. Ewert; 12. Physical factors affecting the water exchange of buried reptile eggs Ralph A. Ackerman; 13. The physiological and ecological importance of water to embryos of oviparous reptiles Gary C. Packard; 14. Roles of water in avian eggs Amos Ar; 15. Water economy and solute regulation of reptilian and avian embryos David Vleck; 16. The avian eggshell as a mediating barrier: respiratory gas fluxes and pressures during development Charles V. Paganelli; 17. Gas exchange across reptilian eggshells Denis C. Deeming and Michael B. Thompson; 18. Metabolism and energetics of reptilian and avian embryos Carol M. Vleck and Donald F. Hoyt; 19. Reasons for the dichotomy in egg turning in birds and reptiles Denis C. Deeming; 20. A comparison of reptilian eggs with those of megapode birds David T. Booth and Michael B. Thompson; 21. Why birds lay eggs Hermann Rahn; 22. Influences of incubation requirements on the evolution of viviparity Richard Shine; 23. Overview of early stages of avian and reptilian development Ruth Bellairs; 24. Ions and ion regulating mechanisms in the developing fowl embryo James I. Gillespie, James R. Greenwell, Elspeth Russell and Claire J. Dickens; 25. Electrochemical processes during embryonic development Paul O'Shea; 26. Methods for shell-less and semi-shell-less culture of avian and reptilian embryos Bruce E. Dunn; 27. Experimental studies on cultured, shell-less fowl embryos: calcium transport, skeletal development and cardio-vascular functions Rocky S. Tuan, Tamao Ono, Robert E. Akins and Masafumi Koide.

This book reviews comprehensively incubation effects on embryonic development in birds and reptiles and presents the first ever synthesis of data from these two vertebrate classes. International experts in each field have contributed to this extensively referenced volume and it will be of great interest not only to research biologists, but also to bird and reptile breeders.