egg tooth

A hard toothlike projection on the beak of an embryonic bird or the snout of an embryonic reptile that is used to break through the eggshell upon hatching and that later falls off or is absorbed.

egg tooth

a small horny projection at the tip of the bill in birds used to pierce the egg shell.

Collins Dictionary of Biology, 3rd ed. © W. G. Hale, V. A. Saunders, J. P. Margham 2005

References in periodicals archive

Hatchlings use a small egg tooth to break out of the shells--generally around mid-August--and then dig their way out of the nests.

In the company of Dinosaurs

To break free from their incubation, the tiny reptiles have an 'egg tooth' on the end of their upper jaw which they use to break open the egg to free themselves.

Baby crocs swim into limelight at The Dubai Mall

Birds and many reptiles slice through their shell with a spiky point on their snout or beak called an egg tooth.

Chamber of secrets: enter the wondrous world of the egg

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