# CAN REDFOOT EGGS BE HATCHED MOTHER NATURES WAY IN FLORIDA?



## gustaf (Sep 22, 2014)

I live near tampa Florida. If my female redfoot digs a nest and lays a clutch of eggs will they hatch if i just leave them alone and let nature take its course? Will it get to cold if its winter time for the underground eggs to develop?
Can redfoot eggs go into a period of diapause like some other species do? 
I know most people use incubators but i just want to know if they would have a reasonable chance of hatching if left in the ground.


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## G-stars (Sep 22, 2014)

I believe they have a good chance of hatching especially in Florida. 


— Gus


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## ZEROPILOT (Sep 23, 2014)

I think they take like 180 days to hatch. October is almost here and then you're headed into the winter.... Even in SOUTH Florida it could get into the upper 40s. I'd say no. Mark them and get them into an incubator. ( I am just a novice)


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## CharlieM (Sep 23, 2014)

I know @allegraf and a few others have been surprised by some hatchlings from missed nests. They don't intentionally leave the eggs outside though.


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## gustaf (Sep 23, 2014)

Yes we are heading into october so the eggs would be outside, 4 inches underground for the coldest part of the year.
We have a couple months that its not uncommon for some of the overnight temps to drop into the 40's. We even have a few nights where it drops down to around freezing for a few hours. My fear is that the cold temps may kill a developing embryo.
But it also leads me to this question:
Is it possible the eggs could go into a state of diapase untill the temps consistently warm up enough for development to begin again?
Is that even possible for redfoots.


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## allegraf (Sep 23, 2014)

I don't know about diapause, but it is possible for redfoot eggs to successfully incubate in the ground in Tampa. Friends of mine found a hatchling a few years ago after several cold fronts going down in the 40s. They live in Sanford. They only found one, the hatching rate is likely significantly lower when left in the ground vs incubator.


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## ZEROPILOT (Sep 24, 2014)

My hatching rate is low....even with my incubator.


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