Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: paul.fr on 10/05/2007 02:40:07

Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: paul.fr on 10/05/2007 02:40:07
A friend, who i have no reason to doubt, said that he mistakenly left some eggs "out back" when it was hot last week. A few days later when he rememberd them, he took them inside, and upon cracking one open. He said there were magots inside! Is that possible?
Title: Re: maggots in eggs!
Post by: another_someone on 10/05/2007 03:02:03
If there was no prior damage to the shell of the eggs, I would have been surprised that the maggots could have gotten through the shell.  If the shells were already cracked, then I could not discount the possibility (but maybe someone will come along and say that eggs have some toxicity for maggots - if that is so, then I will have learnt something).
Title: Re: maggots in eggs!
Post by: kdlynn on 10/05/2007 03:08:56
not that i'd want to if i were in that situation, but did he check all of the eggs? or was it just one? either way, ew!
Title: Re: maggots in eggs!
Post by: paul.fr on 10/05/2007 16:36:08
eggs shells are porous, could this be how the maggots got in?
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: RD on 10/05/2007 16:43:24
The maggot eggs could have been present before the shell formed, (vertical transmission).
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: neilep on 10/05/2007 17:06:42
...........or they could just be ginormous Maggot Eggs in their own right !!

It happens you know ?
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: Karen W. on 10/05/2007 17:19:44
LOL.. That is odd though! I have raised thousands of chickens. I have never seen that! Rotten yes double yolk yes formed chicks yes..Not maggots.. YUCKY!
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: moonfire on 10/05/2007 23:15:25
I haven't either...hmmm, interesting..
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: another_someone on 10/05/2007 23:33:09
The maggot eggs could have been present before the shell formed, (vertical transmission).

Maggots are larvae - are you suggesting that the flys that laid them were living inside the adult chicken?
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: another_someone on 10/05/2007 23:34:59
eggs shells are porous, could this be how the maggots got in?

Porous to water and air, but the eggs from which the maggots were born would be somewhat larger.
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: RD on 16/05/2007 18:43:20
The maggot eggs could have been present before the shell formed, (vertical transmission).

Maggots are larvae - are you suggesting that the flys that laid them were living inside the adult chicken?
The maggot eggs could have been ingested by the chicken, e.g. fecal-oral transmission, then transmitted vertically.

It is possible that the parasites were wrongly identified as maggots, but were actually worms.
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: another_someone on 16/05/2007 19:53:26
The maggot eggs could have been ingested by the chicken, e.g. fecal-oral transmission, then transmitted vertically.

How well do maggots tolerate passing through the gut of a live chicken?

Would not the maggot have to somehow pass from the bowels to the reproductive system of the chicken?

It is possible that the parasites were wrongly identified as maggots, but were actually worms.

This sound like a plausible option - although that still leaves the question as to what kind of worms could perform such a feat.
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: Seany on 16/05/2007 21:00:11
You can get tiny maggots. 1-2mm in width.. Like woodworms or something, they may have made a hole in the egg and gone in. Since the hole is so small, he may not have seen it. But I'm not sure whether maggots have the ability to piece a hole through egg shell, like woodworms through wood?
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: paul.fr on 16/05/2007 21:07:58
You can get tiny maggots. 1-2mm in width.. Like woodworms or something, they may have made a hole in the egg and gone in. Since the hole is so small, he may not have seen it. But I'm not sure whether maggots have the ability to piece a hole through egg shell, like woodworms through wood?

Seany, i posted a experiment here http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=6730.msg85263#msg85263 , i dont think the holes in the egg are large enough for those tiny maggots.
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: Seany on 16/05/2007 21:26:14
I'm not understanding you. If you the maggots/woodworms made the hole.. Dug the hole basically, how would they not be large enough for them to go through?
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: paul.fr on 16/05/2007 21:32:13
I'm not understanding you. If you the maggots/woodworms made the hole.. Dug the hole basically, how would they not be large enough for them to go through?

sorry i thought you meant that the holes in the egg were big enough, in the first place. Not that they dug their way in.
Title: maggots in eggs!
Post by: Seany on 16/05/2007 21:37:45
Oh ok.. But I doubt it would be maggots if they dug their way in. Probably some other maggot like worm thing.