The objectives of this experiment were to study the effects of different environmental temperatures during the rearing phase on the heat tolerance and behavioral responses of two Japanese quail lines to heat stress. A total of 192 chicks from two lines were randomly distributed between eight brooding cages. Each line was divided into 4 treatments. Each treatment was different in experimental pe...

A study was conducted to determine the effects of EM supplied in drinking water and feed on growth, egg production and waste characteristics of Japanese quail. The effect of EM on the growth of 1,000 day-old quail was assessed using a completely randomized design with four treatments: a control; EM added in drinking water at 1:5,000; EM (in the form of fermented compost or bokashi) added in fee...

Newly hatched chicks will spontaneously peck at conspicuous objects in their field of view, and soon learn to distinguish between edible food particles and unpleasant tasting objects. To examine whether the selective pecking is based on the ability to memorize shapes, we analyzed pecking behavior of 1- to 2-days-old quail chicks (Coturnix japonica) by using ball- and triangle-shaped beads both ...

Separate subchronic reproductive toxicity studies were conducted using mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) and northern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus). Three groups (32/group; 16 male-female pairs) of 17-week-old ducks (F0 generation) were fed Purina Game Bird Breeder Layena diets containing mean (+/-SD) 33.2 (+/-2.7), 68.9 (+/-1.8), and 140.9 (+/-5.1) microg/g strychnine for 20 weeks, wit...

The development of fearfulness and the capacity of animals to cope with stressful events are particularly sensitive to early experience with mothers in a wide range of species. However, intrinsic characteristics of young animals can modulate maternal influence. This study evaluated the effect of intrinsic fearfulness on non-genetic maternal influence. Quail chicks, divergently selected for eith...

Pairs of individuals breed together only if they recognize each other as the same species, but the process of recognizing conspecifics can depend on flexible criteria even when species-specific signals are innate and fixed. This study examines species recognition in naturally hybridizing sister species, California and Gambel's quail (Callipepla californica and Callipepla gambelii), that have vo...

The effect of different housing conditions on body weight, weight gain, feed intake, water consumption, egg production, rectal temperature, hematocrit value and mortality rate were studied in Japanese quail. Three experimental groups: winter conditions (control), long day-light (lighted) and hot climate (heated) were used. A total of 195 quail chicks (65/group, 40 females and 25 males) were use...

The accessibility of avian embryos has helped experimental embryologists understand the fates of cells during development and the role of tissue interactions that regulate patterning and morphogenesis of vertebrates (e.g., (1, 2, 3, 4)). Here, we illustrate a method that exploits this accessibility to test the signaling and patterning properties of ectodermal tissues during facial development. ...