Deterioration of green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) eggs after known embryo mortality

Abstract

To determine the time interval between embryonic death and physical alterations in appearance of green turtle (Chelonia mydas) eggs, one each of matched pairs of eggs were inverted after 7–10 days of incubation. Chalkiness of the white spot diminished after 44 hours as maintenance of the chorio-allantoic membrane, contributing to the opaque appearance of viable eggs, ceased after embryo mortality. Results of this study will allow embryo mortality to be attributed to known specific events or conditions within the incubation period.