Egg Tooth

Dr. Stephen Kress, Founder and Director of Project Puffin holds up a herring gull chick for a group of Hog Island campers on a field trip out to Eastern Egg Rock, six miles offshore.

While still inside the egg, the baby chick develops a specialized feature on the tip of the upper bill known as an egg tooth. This protrusion will help the chick to make the first break in the shell, called a pip. This weak point forms a crack which extends around the entire circumference of the egg, allowing it to break open and the chick to emerge.

Photo Courtesy of: Sue Schubel