Can snakes use yolk reserves to maximize body size at hatching?

We experimentally miniaturized freshly laid eggs of the Chinese cobra (Elapidae) by removing ∼10% and ∼20% of original yolk. We tested if yolk-reduced eggs would produce 1) normal-sized hatchlings with invariant yolk-free body mass (and thus invariant linear size) but dramatically reduced or even completely depleted residual yolk, 2) smaller hatchlings with normal-sized residual yolk but reduced yolk-free body mass, or 3) smaller hatchlings of which both yolk-free body mass and residual yolk are proportionally reduced. Yolk quantity affected hatchling linear size (both snout-vent length and tail length) and body mass.