Delayed Oviposition Observed in Hens Fed Purified Diets

In the course of studies of the amino acid requirements for egg production, we have observed a number of instances of delayed oviposition in birds fed purified control diets. Normally, an egg remains in the uterus from 19 to 24 hours, according to Warren and Scott (1935a, 1935b), and during the last 13 hours the egg has a hard shell. Scott and Warren (1936) found no evidence for the belief that “the clutch was terminated by the holding over until the next morning of the egg which was scheduled to be laid at an abnormal period, late afternoon or night.” Scott (1940) reported that disturbing hens by catching and moving them was occasionally followed by delayed oviposition and that the subsequent egg, which entered the uterus before the first egg was laid, was usually malformed. Rothchild and Fraps (1944) observed that oviposition of an egg was delayed for 1 to . . .