Eggs and Slow Worms

[SteveSxx]

We keep on finding eggs in our garden (Somerset) - they are small white hens egg sized - we have found about a dozen in the last 12 months - buried in the soil / in the compost heap - any suggestions as to what they might be ?

They are not fertilized or are not live - when broken open they smell awful and don't contain any viable or recognisable lifeform

We also have a breeding pair of slow worms - the cats keep on bringing them in to the house (unarmed if a little shocked) - these eggs are way too big for slowworm eggs, I assume - the slow worms are less than an inch thick....

[gen2]

I have no idea what the eggs are, but slow worms, apart from being too small, cannot be the cause because slow worms give birth to live young in late summer.

[Lonnie]

They'll probably be Hens eggs, brought in by Foxes, its what they do, they may come back for them later, i've found them buried in my larger pots as well as the compost.

[File Cutter]

Probably grass snakes-

The female lays 8-40 eggs, depending on her size, in July-August. A clutch usually contains about 10 eggs held together by mucous, secreted by the glands of the oviduct, which then dries to hold the eggs together. Female grass snakes choose a warm site to lay their eggs, such as a compost heap or under rotting logs,

[dancecaller]

If small (like a bantam egg) the might be pheasant eggs. We had a nest in our daffodils last year. Really good cover until the leaves started to die back then she was in the open. Still almost invisible though.She usually sat tight if anyone had to go past. Once she was off the nest and we saw a hugh clutch (15 or so, I think) Then nothing but a pile of feathers - aah

[Thunderbird+]

I'm inclined to agree with Lonnie, Fox's will bury eggs in what they regard as their teritory, to dig up and eat later, the pongyier the better, they've even been known to bury golf balls thinking the're eggs too.

[SteveSxx]

It could just be kids trying to confuse us - we have cats - so foxes are not likely to hang about

and the same goes for Pheasants

And as for snakes - not in our garden (I hope !!)

[Thunderbird+]

I would'nt discount foxes entirely, because you have cats, generally they dont take an awful lot of notice of each other and just tend to keep out of each others way, perhaps not the arch enemies one might expect ?