In the first part of this study, we used high-speed video recordings of individual embryos hatching to characterize the hatching process in A. callidryas. We identified distinctive pre-rupture behavior and observed the context of egg membrane rupture and process of exiting the egg capsule. Based on these results, we hypothesized (i) that membrane rupture is enzymatic, not mechanical or muscular, and (ii) that embryos release hatching enzymes rapidly and locally from their snout. If hatching is mediated by local, acute enzyme release from the snout, we predicted that the membrane would rupture where the snout was located when the pre-rupture behavior was initiated, even if the embryo was subsequently displaced from this position. Moreover, if localized enzymatic digestion is required for embryos to exit the egg, displacing the embryo from the position where it initiated hatching should delay its exit. To test these predictions, in the second part of this study we experimentally spun embryos within their egg capsule after the apparent initiation of hatching and recorded the location and timing of membrane rupture and exit from the egg. Finally, to understand the role of hatching glands (HGs) in this process, we used scanning electron microscopy to locate and characterize HGCs in A. callidryas and scanning transmission electron microscopy to examine the contents of HGCs before and just after hatching.