Why are guillemot eggs pointed?

So they are more stable on cliff ledges

What does incubating eggs mean?

Keeping them warm until they hatch

Bird Eggs Quiz: Can You Get 8 Out of 10?

Guillemots lay pointed eggs on bare cliff ledges, and this bird eggs quiz explains why that shape matters. Compare the giant eggs of the ostrich in Africa with the tiny ones of a hummingbird, and discover why eggs come in blue, speckled and pure white.

Start Bird Eggs Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Largest
Which living bird lays the largest egg?
Smallest
Which bird lays the smallest eggs?
Kiwi
Which bird lays an egg about 20% of its body weight?
Cliff
Why are guillemot eggs pointed?
Blue
Which bird lays famously blue eggs?
Shell
What are eggshells mostly made of?
Incubate
What does incubating eggs mean?
Cuckoo
Where do common cuckoos lay their eggs?
Mound
Which Australian bird incubates eggs in a heap of rotting leaves?
Tooth
What does a chick use to break out of its egg?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which living bird lays the largest egg?
Answer: Ostrich
It can weigh about 1.4 kilograms.
Q2: Which bird lays the smallest eggs?
Answer: Bee hummingbird
Its eggs are about the size of a pea.
Q3: Which bird lays an egg about 20% of its body weight?
Answer: Kiwi
It is huge compared to the mother.
Q4: Why are guillemot eggs pointed?
Answer: So they are more stable on cliff ledges
Pointed eggs roll less easily off ledges.
Q5: Which bird lays famously blue eggs?
Answer: American robin
Robin's egg blue is named after them.
Q6: What are eggshells mostly made of?
Answer: Calcium carbonate
Tiny pores let air through.
Q7: What does incubating eggs mean?
Answer: Keeping them warm until they hatch
Many birds have a bare brood patch.
Q8: Where do common cuckoos lay their eggs?
Answer: In other birds' nests
Host birds raise the cuckoo chick.
Q9: Which Australian bird incubates eggs in a heap of rotting leaves?
Answer: Malleefowl
It checks temperature with its beak.
Q10: What does a chick use to break out of its egg?
Answer: An egg tooth
It falls off after hatching.

Bird Eggs Quiz – Shells, Shapes and Colors

All birds lay eggs with hard shells made mostly of calcium carbonate. Eggs range from the huge ostrich egg to the pea-sized egg of the bee hummingbird, and their shapes vary from round to long and pointed.

Egg colors and patterns help hide eggs from predators or let parents recognize their own. Birds that nest in dark holes often lay white eggs, while ground-nesters lay speckled eggs that blend in with soil and stones.

Most birds keep their eggs warm by sitting on them, but some, like the malleefowl, use heat from rotting leaves. Cuckoos trick other birds into raising their chicks by laying eggs that mimic those of the host.

What This Quiz Teaches

Bird fans and science students will enjoy these questions.

Which bird lays the largest egg
Why some eggs are pointed
What shells are made of
How eggs are incubated
How cuckoos trick hosts

Did You Know?

Emu eggs are dark green.
Penguins balance eggs on their feet.
Egg collecting is illegal in many countries.
Some birds lay one egg a year.
Chicks call from inside the egg.