chestnut-breasted mannikin egg

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tompm
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chestnut-breasted mannikin egg

This morning I found an egg in our birdfeeder. It wasn't there last night, so must have been lost(?) today.

It looks loke a chestnut-breasted mannikin's, it is much smaller than a red-browed finch's, which is the other species visiting the feeder.

Why would a bird lay an egg outside its nest?

Do I have a chance of incubating it?

Christina

soakes
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Wow, that's weird.  Maybe it was caught short? :/

- soakes

soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia

Woko
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Could the egg have been stolen from the nest?

tompm
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The feeding tray is covered by an upside-down  wire hanging basket, so only finches can get through.

I haven't found a nest (it might be nearby in dense vegetation). I think it is more likely, that something happened to make the bird drop an egg while she was feeding in the tray.

Christina

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