No abstract

A study was undertaken to determine if light causes embryonic acceleration by working through the xanthophyll pigments in the egg yolk. Using the same type of incubating and lighting system described by other workers, eggs from White Leghorn hens fed diets with and without dietary xanthophyll were exposed to either dark or lighted incubation and allowed to hatch. Results of the study indicated that light does not accelerate embryonic growth through its effect on the xanthophyll pigments in the yolk, but it does support light as a stimulus for embryonic acceleration. (