Abstract
To elucidate the relationship of the position of egg in sequence to the quality of eggshell, the strength and thickness of shells of eggs in various lengths of sequences was measured. The strength of eggshells was not different between the first and second eggs in 2-egg sequences, but a higher strength was observed in the first and last eggs of 3-egg sequences compared with that of the second egg. In 4- and 5-egg sequences, the strength of eggshells tended to be higher for the first and last eggs than for the last egg but one. No difference was found in the thickness of eggshells between the first and second eggs in 2-egg sequences, but in sequences of 3 eggs or more the eggshell of the first and last eggs was thicker than that of the last egg but one. The strength and thickness of eggshells of the first and last eggs tended to be higher as the sequence length increased. The results indicate that eggshell quality may change in relation to the position of egg within a sequence and the sequence length in laying hens.
