BioDiaries Quick bites Cracking the Mystery: The Egg Yolk Secret Revealed

Cracking the Mystery: The Egg Yolk Secret Revealed

egg yolk

Have you ever wondered if the egg yolk is just an underdeveloped chicken? Then this short read will leave you stunned. Let’s crack the secret behind the egg yolk.

Chickens: where do they develop from? The egg white or the egg yolk?

The answer is neither. For an egg to hatch into a chicken, it needs to be fertilized by a rooster. Most eggs we eat are retrieved straight from a poultry farm entirely made of unfertilized eggs. 

When a sperm from the rooster fertilizes the egg, the chicken grows inside the egg. The egg is incubated either in the hen or in an incubator. After sufficient growth, the egg hatches by breaking open the eggshell, thereby releasing the chicken. 

What makes up the egg albumin (white) and egg yolk: Unravelling the mystery 

The egg white consists of the protein albumin and water. 

The egg yolk is the primary source of food for the developing embryo (chicken) and consists of fats, minerals, and vitamins. 

The different layers of egg

  1. Outer shell: it is a hard and porous protective layer made entirely of calcium carbonate. The pores in the shell allow for gaseous exchange. 
  2. Outer membrane and inner membrane: they protect the contents of the egg
  3. Egg yolk: two strands of mucin fibers called the chalazae hold the it in the center. 

It has a tiny white spot known as the germinal disc. This is where the female genetic material is found. If fertilized by a rooster, this germinal disc is what develops into an embryo. 

Temporary organs inside the egg

If the egg is fertilized, special temporary organs or embryonic membranes are formed: 

Yolk sac: it provides the necessary food material

Amnion: provides protection

 Allantois: a respiratory organ that handles the waste

Chemical composition of an egg yolk

It is made of 32% lipids, 16% protein, and 50 % water. 

So, to answer the question in the beginning, the egg yolk is not an underdeveloped chicken. For a baby chicken to develop, it needs a rooster. The egg yolk merely provides the nourishment and food for the growth of the baby chicken.

4 thoughts on “Cracking the Mystery: The Egg Yolk Secret Revealed”

  1. Interesting! Jfyi, there’s also an “air sac” in the egg. It helps the chick breathe the moment it has developed enough!

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