It's 3:44 AM and I went to the backyard to check on my quails and had to separate a male and a female, each in solitary confinement until morning, so I can figure out if they got scared or if one of them had a nightmare.
As you may have already noticed, this is not an article you'd read on Globo Rural's website, but if you give me a chance, I'm sure you'll like it. You'll very likely find useful information here, both for professional and amateur breeders, and even for that uncle who enjoys keeping quails in the backyard as a hobby.
First, let's talk about the eggs.
They are quite peculiar, both in size, coloration, and appearance.
Birds that nest in tree trunks usually have white or blue eggs, and the same applies to nocturnal birds. The reason for this is quite simple: it helps the parents see the eggs in the nest.
Quails, on the other hand, camouflage their eggs to resemble stones.
Biologically and physiologically speaking, it takes a quail approximately 24 hours to generate an egg, and another 3 to 3.5 hours to "paint" the egg and leave it as we all know it.
If, during the final stage when the egg acquires its appearance, the quail gets "startled," the egg might hatch with a white or grayish color (without speckles).
So, if an occasional speckled egg appears, relax. But if it happens often, you'll need to take serious measures, especially regarding their diet, lighting, and routine. (We'll discuss each of these topics shortly).
And since we're talking about eggs, let's take this opportunity to discuss choosing eggs for reproduction.
The first aspect is to understand that quails face an intense risk regarding inbreeding. (To be continued tomorrow)
It's 3:44 AM and I went to the backyard to check on my quails and had to separate a male and a female, each in solitary confinement until morning, so I can figure out if they got scared or if one of them had a nightmare.
As you may have already noticed, this is not an article you'd read on Globo Rural's website, but if you give me a chance, I'm sure you'll like it. You'll very likely find useful information here, both for professional and amateur breeders, and even for that uncle who enjoys keeping quails in the backyard as a hobby.
First, let's talk about the eggs.
They are quite peculiar, both in size, coloration, and appearance.
Birds that nest in tree trunks usually have white or blue eggs, and the same applies to nocturnal birds. The reason for this is quite simple: it helps the parents see the eggs in the nest.
Quails, on the other hand, camouflage their eggs to resemble stones.
Biologically and physiologically speaking, it takes a quail approximately 24 hours to generate an egg, and another 3 to 3.5 hours to "paint" the egg and leave it as we all know it.
If, during the final stage when the egg acquires its appearance, the quail gets "startled," the egg might hatch with a white or grayish color (without speckles).
So, if an occasional speckled egg appears, relax. But if it happens often, you'll need to take serious measures, especially regarding their diet, lighting, and routine. (We'll discuss each of these topics shortly).
And since we're talking about eggs, let's take this opportunity to discuss choosing eggs for reproduction.
The first aspect is to understand that quails face an intense risk regarding inbreeding. (To be continued tomorrow)
