The best quail breeds: photo and description

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

In our country, quail breeding began relatively recently - about twenty years ago. Around the beginning of the 2000s, there was a real boom in this bird. From the TV screens, from the pages of magazines and newspapers, praises about their "magical" qualities literally poured. They say that their eggs are healing, and the meat is hypoallergenic, and in general, it is a panacea for all diseases. The marketers of that time, albeit clumsily, nevertheless zombified ordinary people, so the army of bird fans was assembled impressive.

The next wave swept a few years later, when farmers began to seriously engage in quail breeding and invested in poultry farms. Frenzied marketers went even further, "discovering" new qualities of birds. It turns out that their eggs do not go out due to the fact that the body temperature of a female quail is much higher than that of a chicken, and they do not get sick with salmonellosis, also for some mystical reason.

Myths about quails

These are, of course, myths, but real scientific facts (data from the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences) say the following. The eggs of almost all quail breeds do not go rotten for a more than prosaic reason: due to their low weight, they simply do not have time to deteriorate and dry out before harmfulbacteria.

As for salmonellosis, this is an exceptionally cunning move by marketers and a brazen deception of the buyer. All breeds of quails can become infected with the disease, and equally with chickens. So do not completely trust advertising that promises mountains of gold.

Thanks to such myths, hundreds of specialized farms were opened and millions of rubles were spent on the best quail breeds. Yes, marketers along with sellers got rich, but a simple farmer did not remain at a loss, selling products to the same zombie consumers.

Despite all the myths and attempts to idealize an individual with the help of dishonest advertising, in fact, the quail is a truly unique bird. We will talk about this in our article.

So, we present to your attention popular quail breeds with photos and descriptions. Let's analyze the pros and cons of the bird, as well as the feasibility of breeding one species or another.

Japanese Quail

Japanese quail breed (pictured below) are small variegated individuals with unsuitable wings for flight. The bird has a barely noticeable tail and an elongated body. Males have a more intense coloration and a brown chest, while females have a less attractive coloration and a light chest.

The weight of adults does not exceed 130 grams, so the bird seems small and fragile. She is not suitable for a meat reserve, but she gives a lot of eggs - in this she has no equal. The female's annual egg production ranges from 300 eggs. In the official description of quail breedsthe Japanese individual is considered unpretentious to the content, but this is true only for the southern regions of our country. If the habitat is not properly equipped, then the already frail bird begins to get sick and rush badly. Nevertheless, the individual is resistant to a number of dangerous and quail-specific diseases.

Manchurian golden quail

This very beautiful breed of quail is somewhat reminiscent of the previous "Japanese", but unlike them, the golden quail has a more expressive yellowish color and a large skeleton. The bird is unique, therefore it is enviably popular with domestic farmers.

Females can boast not only good egg production, but also good meat performance. In addition, crossing Manchurian meat quail breeds with other individuals gives very interesting and really useful results. The young in this case gain weight very quickly and grow noticeably larger.

In one year, a bird can lay up to 220 eggs, and much larger than the usual quail sizes. If other individuals give eggs for 10-12 grams, then the Manchurian female - about 16-18 grams. This is not surprising, because the bird grows rapidly and gains its average weight of 300 grams, which is twice the rate of the Japanese quail. Males are more modest in weight - only 200 grams.

Pharaoh

Whatever breeds of quail you take, all these are the works of a long and careful selection. One of the most successful examples is the meat breed Pharaoh, which was born thanks to the efforts ofAmerican breeders.

The appearance of the bird turned out to be almost identical to wild individuals, but the Pharaoh gained a lot of weight. Just like the Manchurian quail, they quickly gain their mass, and in adulthood, females weigh about 300 grams, and males no more than 250.

Egg production in a bird at an average level - about 220 eggs, and quite large (16 gr). The practicality of this species for breeding has been officially confirmed by specialists from Europe and Russia. American breeders did not stop there and continue to develop an individual: they are deducing new lines of the Pharaoh.

Texas quail

The Texas quail breed was bred on the basis of the Pharaoh and immediately attracted the attention of farmers and poultry farmers around the world. The bird received an expressive white color, so it is sometimes called the White Pharaoh.

An adult female with proper care can gain weight up to 400 grams, and a male up to 350 grams. The specific white plumage also affected the skin of the bird. Texas quail is especially attractive to connoisseurs of exotic gastronomy, while the meat of dark or variegated individuals is less in demand by gourmets.

As for breeding and keeping, the birds are mostly unpretentious, and young growth quickly gains weight, even despite a moderate diet. Texas quails can be found both in the southern strip of Russia and in the middle one.

Estonian quail

Through a longselection of previous species in Europe, Estonian quails were bred. Individuals are distinguished by both good egg production and a good indicator of live meat. The bird received excellent endurance and unpretentiousness in keeping from its fellows.

Estonian quails have a rounded frame, cut wings, a short neck and a massive back. The color scheme of the bird is close to wild breeds, and, unlike other individuals, males look much more expressive than females. One of the notable features of the breed is its early egg production. As soon as they reach maturity (about 40 days), female Estonian quail begin to rush in full force.

Birds do not weigh that much - only 130 grams, but even with their small mass, a lot (for a given weight) of live and very tasty meat is obtained. Many gourmets prefer to see Estonian quails in their menu.

English Black Quail

This species was bred in England, where the Japanese quail served as the main breed. The bird has dark, and sometimes pure black plumage. This breed quickly spread throughout Europe, and then came to Russia.

Domestic breeders and farmers liked the bird due to its fatness and unpretentiousness to the content. And while some complain about too slow maturation and mediocre hatching instincts, English quail meat and eggs are highly valued.

Females, upon reaching maturity, gain about 200 grams of live weight,and males are a little behind - 160-180 gr. In one year, the bird brings about 280 delicious gourmet eggs. Experts in this field advise amateurs to start breeding quails with this unpretentious and docile breed.

Tuxedo Quail

This breed has a very interesting and original appearance of individuals. Breeders, crossing birds with a white color and with a black English quail, received an unusual representative of their species.

Dark from above, and light from below, the individual received the appropriate name - a tuxedo quail. The top color can change due to mutations, but the bottom always remains the same. The bird is bred for two directions - meat and eggs. An adult female gains weight no more than 160 grams, and males even less. But this does not prevent the tuxedo quail from producing up to 280 delicious eggs per year, plus providing gourmets with delicious meat.

Chinese painted quail

If the past specimen surprises with its “tuxedo”, then the Chinese quails are rich in colors on the neck and back. In addition to the visual component, the bird is also distinguished by its attachment to its partner. Other breeds are polygamous by nature, while the Chinese painted quail prefers to spend his whole life with one chosen one. And if the latter dies, then the male or female begins to get very sick and soon die themselves.

This feature of Chinese painted quails gave rise to a lot of Chinese-specificlegends and tales. Such affection does not have the best effect on quail breeding, because in addition to the usual maintenance and care of the bird, you need to be aware of its “personal life”.

Distinctive features of the breed

Despite such features, this breed is unpretentious and calmly treats other feathered neighbors in the yard. But if the latter try to get into their cages or sit on some personal places, then Chinese quails can rush to defend their space.

As for egg production and meat, here we have a solid average: 160-170 grams of live weight and about 150 eggs per year. It is also worth noting that a good half of breeders from the Middle Kingdom breed and breed individuals not only in gastronomic interests, but also in decorative ones. In Russia, this direction is not so in demand, but in China, some consider this breed almost sacred, like a cow in India, and even worship it. Decorative individuals, of course, are much prettier than their meat and egg counterparts, and their coloration is more pronounced and saturated. The cost of such subspecies sometimes comes to the prices of cars and real estate. So not only meat and eggs can be taken from Chinese quail.