RECORD EGG-LAYING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19675, 29 June 1927, Page 14

RECORD EGG-LAYING.

AUSTRALIAN DUCK LEADS. YEAR'S AVERAGE OF ONE A DAY. In the Hehald Supplement last Saturday there appeared the following item : "The record for laying eggs belongs to a hen in British Columbia. She supplied 351 eggs in 365 days." This information referred to a hen owned by the University of British Columbia, and it was stated by Professor IJverton Lloyd, of Vancouver, that three eggs since laid by this wonderful bird had been sold to a poultry breeder for £5 each, equal to £6O a dozen.

Although the number of eggs laid may bo a record for the great American Continent, it is not by any means a world's record. It is generally admitted the world's record has been held since 1921 by a New Zealand duck, beloning to Mr. W. Knight, which laid 363 eggs in 365 days at the Papanui egg-laving competition in Christchurch. This remarkable duck missed only six days in the year, but as she laid two eggs in a day on four occasions the grand total was only two short of the possible. Even tliis record lias just been beaten, for at the competition recently concluded in Geelong, Victoria, a cluck laid 365 eggs in the year. This included 295 eggs in one period of 292 days, without missing a single day, and it is believed this sequence, as well as the total for the year, is a world's record. In one respect the performance was very similar to that of the New Zealand duck, for the Geelong bird missed laying on five days, but on five other days she laid two eggs, and that brought the total up to what is generally regarded as the possible, 365 eggs in a year. It is doubtful, however, whether even this total is tlie absolute possible, for the Geelong bird, in addition to the 365 eggs recorded, laid also one soft-shelled egg, making 366 eggs for the year, but at egg-laying competitions the soft-shelled eggs arc never counted Although phenomenal individual performances naturally attract most attention, now that most egR-laying competitions are conducted on the single-pen system. more people will probably bo interested in the average production of all the birds competing in each breed. As the Victorian Poultry Journal has published these figures for one of the competitions recently held there, the very large one at Bendigo, it is now possible to make a comparison with the results in the New Zealand competitions recently concluded, of which the largest are conducted each year at Mount Albert and Papanui. The following table shows the average production of eggs in the year from the most popular breeds of fowls at each of tnese three competitions:— Ben. Mt. Papa- *"■ Breed. digo. Albert. nui. While Leghorns . . 233 213 223 Bluck Minorcns . . Blnck Orpinctons . . 223 213 IP9 White Wynndottes . . 209 197 190 Silver Wynndottes . . 233 - 201 Rhode Island Reds . . 241 150 228 Ija ncshann . . . 222 204 White Rocks . . . . IGI 204 Total No. of hens . . *507 380 317 Average eggs a year 22G 214 220