Ducklings hatch at Butler Library
The chirping coming from the children’s section at the Butler Area Public Library is not being “hushed” this week.
It all started Thursday evening, when the first duckling beak poked through its egg and entered the world. Lori Hinderliter, director of the Butler library, said the firstborn sibling got tired of waiting Thursday evening and began to peck at the other eggs in the incubator. With a little help, the rest of the eggs hatched overnight.
The library has hatched chicks and quails in previous years. Tiffany Harkleroad, children’s librarian, said a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit called Rent the Chicken recommended that its clients get experience with easier birds before taking on duck eggs.
“Duck hatches are very different; they take a lot longer,” Harkleroad said. “The length we have them as birds is shorter. The chicks and quails we had for about two weeks.
“It makes sense because the ducks are going to try to start flying, and they are also bigger and grow very, very quickly.”
The library has incubated eggs the past three years as an educational opportunity for youths, according to Harkleroad. She said library patrons can view the birds, and even hold them while they are at the library. Harkleroad also said she may have some story times focused on ducklings.
“It's a great educational opportunity for kids, especially kids in the city, who may not be able to see live farm animals often,” Harkleroad said. “It's a really good opportunity to teach them about the life cycle of birds, because they are different from people.”
In addition to providing an up-close and personal look at ducklings, Harkleroad said children can also learn about their anatomy and life cycle through their presence, just like she has. She said watching the hatching process itself taught her new information about ducks.
For example, the first part of the hatching process is unseen because it happens inside the egg. Harkleroad explained that the eggs come equipped with a duckling’s first breath.
“The first thing the duck does is they poke through the membrane, and that pocket of air is their first breath,” Harkleroad said. “As we got closer to the end, all you could see was the pocket of air. Once they have gotten their breath, they start to make chips and holes called pips.”
Because of their fast rate of growth, the ducks will go back to Rent the Chicken Wednesday. Harkleroad said anyone can stop in to see them until then.
“We'll have story time Wednesday morning, and that may be the last chance folks can see them, because they will be leaving in the middle of the day,” Harkleroad said.
