Nye

Chicken Update November 13, 2010

The Americana hen finally hatched her eggs.  She started out with 12 eggs, one cracked at the very beginning.  It took 21 days for the eggs to hatch, 1 peep died before it hatched, and 2 rotten eggs.  Another peep died and I think the mom must have stepped on it, Na said it looked kind of flat, and there are 7 healthy peeps.

Aperture Priority, EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens, f/4, 1/80sec, ISO 800, exposure bias 0step, focal length 105mm, pattern metering
Aperture Priority, EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens, f/4, 1/50sec, ISO 800, exposure bias 0step, focal length 95mm, pattern metering

The mother keeps her peeps warm.

Aperture Priority, EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens, f/4, 1/20sec, ISO 200, exposure bias 0step, focal length 28mm, pattern metering

The peeps that hatched 5 weeks ago are big now.

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/200sec, ISO 200, Exposure bias 0step, focal length 180mm, pattern metering
Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/60sec, ISO 200, Exposure bias 0step, focal length 200mm, pattern metering

The Old English Game hens are not very friendly, this one fights with other hens and she pretty much stays by herself with her rooster peep.

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/125sec, ISO 200, Exposure bias -1step, focal length 200mm, pattern metering

Then the new addition to the family are two baby Guineafowl, they are native to Africa and they look somewhat exotic to me. I didn’t get a good shot since it was kind of dark in the hen-house and they moved around so much.

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/13sec, ISO 200, Exposure bias -1step, focal length 91mm, pattern metering, pop up flash

The hens are laying fewer eggs now.  They used to lay 36 eggs per day in the summer and now only 15 eggs per day.  After doing some reading, I found that chicken egg laying is tied to the amount of light they receive, and since the time change it gets darker faster these days. And I’m sure it will presume laying more eggs next spring. If Bo’s mom wants them to continue laying the same amount of egg then she would have to provide them artificial light in the hen-house and since this is just a hobby it might not be ideal for her to do so.

Aperture Priority, EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens, f/11, 1/50sec, ISO 200, exposure bias 0step, focal length 84mm, pattern metering

The recent frost killed most her plants in the garden, the papaya tree that was too big for her to bring inside.

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/320sec, ISO 200, exposure bias -0.3step, focal length 70mm, pattern metering

Chili peppers

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/100sec, ISO 200, exposure bias -0.3step, focal length 200mm, pattern metering

This might be the last of the Autumn colors that she will be seeing in her area.

Aperture Priority, EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens, f/4, 1/320sec, ISO 200, exposure bias 0step, focal length 200mm, pattern metering

6 comments

  1. 7 out of 12 chicks making it is pretty good. The photos of the little peep (chicks) is super cute!

    I feel bad for the papaya tree. The freeze comes so fast there. I am dreading the overnight freeze come December and January. I have to take extra care with my succulents this winter.

    • Cambree, when they are that little, there’s danger predator such as eagle as well. They came and got several bigger peeps already and we went on Saturday to put up a play-pin for them. This will keep them safe during the day time, and also being able to play outside.

      I dug up 2 papaya trees for her the week before the freeze, and this one was too big and she didn’t have a big enough pot for it. It would be nice to have nice weather all year round but our winter is kind of icy here.

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