In all three nests with cameras the great tits have finally started laying eggs. In nest box no 1 there were at least 8 eggs already on Sunday, in nest box 2 five eggs and in nest box nr 3 the first egg had been laid:

In a great tit’s full clutch there are usually 8-13 white eggs with sparse rust-coloured flecks. The average egg is 17,5 mm long, 13,5 mm wide and weighs about 1,5-2 grams. Great tits start the incubation after the last egg has been laid. During the egg-laying period, the great tit covers the eggs with nest material, so the number of eggs is not easy to ascertain. When the female leaves the nest during the incubation period the contents of the nest is easier to observe because then she no longer covers the eggs.

In great tit nests where egg-laying had started  before April 20 there are however already full clutches and in two weeks the hatching of chicks is to be expected in these nests

(Estonian original 02.05.2016)

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