Study of the motility of the avian oviduct with chronically implanted electrodes

Electrical activity was recorded in conscious hens from chronically implanted electrodes in the smooth muscle layers of the oviduct. Transport of the egg through the magnum resulted from an inhibition of the electrical activity in the oviduct cranial to the egg and an increased spiking activity caudally. During an ovulatory cycle the progression of the egg was related to four different patterns of the uterine motility: within a sequence, the ovulatory cycles varied according to the duration of Phases 3 and 4.