Fertile or no?

[damein]

this is the clutch of eggs, laid 3/16/16


This is one of the eggs in the clutch. what am I looking at with the red lines? are those veins or just imperfections in the shell?



(I believe that this one above is empty)


This last one was one I thought would be a slug. It is the one in the top right corner of the box.

Sow what does everyone think? what exactly am I looking at?
please excuse the poor quality photos.
(sorry, forgot to add they're bull snake eggs)

[Stewart_Reptiles]

From the first picture the yellowish harden ones are definitely slugs and you can dispose of them now.

Now from the individual pictures while you can see some blood vessels in some of them (very little of them) some are likely infertiles. However I would keep them and re-candle in about 5 days. Sometimes eggs with weak vein structures may surprise you.

The last one is definitely a good one.

[damein]

Thanks for the input!

The big deal about these is that they are from a virgin bull snake. Had her for 5 years and she laid a dud clutch randomly every year then she laid these.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

The big deal about these is that they are from a virgin bull snake. Had her for 5 years and she laid a dud clutch randomly every year then she laid these.

Interesting, very rare but not unheard of in other species.

The last one has a nice red tint to it.

[Spiritserpents]

In my experience with corn snake eggs, when the entire egg has a red glow or tint it's actually infertile. A fertile egg is 'yellow-clear' with red veining over the surface. In the photo of the entire clutch, going left to right, and top to bottom, numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 appear to be infertile due to their irregular shape, odd color, and 'shiny' appearance.
As to the others, I've had seemingly 'good' eggs start with that ring of blood vessels and then never progress. If you don't end up with a network of veins soon, the eggs will eventually die as there won't be enough venous support for the developing embryo. I'll try to find my photos of "if you can do this to the eggs, they are slugs" and post them.

[Spiritserpents]

Corn snake slugs:





You cannot accomplish this with a fertile or at least potentially fertile egg. They are firm, with a little give, rather than squishy like a stress ball.

[damein]

Thanks very much for the response!
I have actually bred snakes before. Rose boas, corns and balls. I know whats a slug and what's not, but experience has told me to throw them in the incubator anyway lol. Funny enough, the one with the best veins is #4.
I have just never candled eggs, so I wasn't sure what I was looking at.
But it's like day 5 now. I candled them again and I'm not seeing any progress with veins. I mean, the eggs still look white and beautiful (exceptions of the slugs. 1,2&5 are done)
Does anyone have pictures of their candled eggs at this stage?
I guess the best option is to wait. If they're good, I'll know haha.

[piedlover79]

This is one of my ball python eggs, but this is what a nice healthy egg looks like when candled. \

Personally I don't give up on an egg until it rots, I've seen some surprising things come out of eggs that don't have great veins. Good luck!

[damein]

Thanks again everyone!
I know it was a long shot to begin with, and I'm not very optimistic about any of it, but I will still let them cook. Might as well, right? the eggs are perfectly round and white as snow, so theres no reason to not try.

But I am comparing a lot of what people post and I'm seeing how empty all of the eggs are. It's disappointing but oh well.
This is about the only egg that seems to have something going on.


(I am SOOOOO sorry for the terrible picture. It's very hard to hold the lid up, hold the light and take the picture at the same time.)
The eggs were laid on 3/16/16. So just 6 days ago. It wasnt like this when it was laid. in fact, I'm pretty sure this one was empty looking as well. Its hard to see in this picture, but I do see little veins in the darker area. Just nothing like what you have shown me or what I've looked up.

So I guess we will just have to see!
Thank you everyone for the comments and opinions. I really appreciate every word given!
And if anyone has anything else to add, please feel free! pictures of candled eggs, advice or comments, anything! I really do enjoy the responses and pictures. The more you can learn, the better!

[damein]

For some reason I can't edit my post haha.
but this is a picture of that same egg, taken the day it laid



It might not mean anything, but its still cool to me.