Relation of Time of Day of Artificial Insemination to Fertility and Hatchability of Hens’ Eggs

The Effect of Restricted Mating in Flocks of New Hampshire Chickens on Fertility and Hatchability of Eggs

“…The results from these experiments showing that restricting the mating of chickens to the afternoon increased fertility as compared with restricting mating to the morning are in agreement with previous work reported by Gracewski and Scott (1943) and Parker (1945) although the differences are not as great. In the present studies restricting mating to the afternoon did not result in higher fertility than when mating was unrestricted; whereas Gracewski and Scott found that fertility was somewhat higher when mating was restricted to the afternoons.…”

“…The observation that time of mating influences hatchability is in agreement with previous studies with artificially inseminated hens reported by Parker (1945). In the previous work with artificially inseminated females it was shown that hatchability was higher when hens had a soft egg in the oviduct at the time of insemination than when a hard-shell egg was present or when no egg was in the oviduct.…”

“…, and Parker (1945) with artificially inseminated hens suggest that restricting the mating of chickens to the afternoon should increase fertility. Moore and Byerly showed that the percentage of fertile eggs laid following the artificial insemination of hens with a hard-shell egg in the uterus was lower than that obtained following the insemination of hens that had just laid or of hens that had a soft-shell egg in the oviduct.…”

Sex in the Morning or in the Evening? Females Adjust Daily Mating Patterns to the Intensity of Sexual Harassment

“…Importantly, mating dynamics showed distinct daily patterns driven by the fact that the probability that an insemination results in fertilization is highest at least 4 h following oviposition and thus typically in the evening (Moore and Byerly 1942;Parker 1945;Johnston and Parker 1970;Christensen and Johnston 1977). In light of this, it seems puzzling that female fowl should solicit in the morning.…”

“…Oviposition occurs in the first half of the day (Etches 1996) and peaks in the middle of the day (Christensen and Johnston 1977;Johnson 2000;Pizzari and Birkhead 2001). Inseminations occurring a few hours before and after oviposition have limited fertilizing efficiency (Moore and Byerly 1942;Parker 1945;Johnston and Parker 1970;Christensen and Johnston 1977) relative to inseminations in the evening (natural matings: Gracewski and Scott 1943;Parker 1945;artificial inseminations: Moore and Byerly 1942;Parker 1945;Christensen and Johnston 1977). Therefore, the evening corresponds to an optimal copulation time because by copulating at this time, a female can minimize the number of copulations required to fertilize her eggs while maximizing fertilization success.…”