For a novice farmer who has recently equipped himself with a quail farm, it is very important to know how to distinguish between quail males and females. Not only the laying capacity of the hens directly depends on this, but also the viability of the eggs obtained: unfertilized are suitable only for table consumption. If you are going to be engaged in breeding, the choice of producers should be treated with special care.
Quail family picking
For the full functioning of the farm, the bird is selected at the rate of one male for 3-5 "girls". Of course, cross-fertilization also gives results . However, feeding extra quail is economically unprofitable. On the other hand, the lack of males will affect the idleness of the females, which means a decrease in the "yield" of eggs. Considering the cost of quail eggs and carcasses, you can greatly reduce the profitability of the farm.
According to strict calculation, to leave or buy males is also not worth it. You should have a kind of bench in case of sudden death of the manufacturer, his illness or low activity. In addition, the tendency to mate is lower in youth, when the quail has not yet entered into force, and at the age when he begins to lose it.
Age of acquisition
The main ways to distinguish male quail from females work with birds from the age of three weeks, when the chicks molted from feathers to feathers. Breeders with some experience cope with the task, having a 14-day brood in front of them. Farmers with decades of experience can separate boys from girls when they are only one week old. However, at first it is better to focus on the grown quail, there will be fewer errors.
By the way, some breeds acquire pronounced sexual characteristics much later. If you intend to engage in the cultivation of American white albino, you will have to buy producers in a month and a half. Up to this age, having no skills, you will not understand who is in front of you - a cockerel or a chicken.
Quail: a description of common features
Let us dwell on the features characteristic of all breeds. The main ways to distinguish quail males from females include:
- Coloring of plumage. In males it is always more catchy.
- The weight of the bird. Hens starting at the age of three weeks gain weight faster. Moreover, this is clearly noticeable, since the difference by six weeks sometimes reaches 15 percent.
- Palpation. The “boy” has a special gland between the cloaca and the tail. Even an inexperienced quailcatcher quickly learns to identify it by touch. If you press it, a foamy whitish secret will appear. Naturally, “girls” do not have such an organ.
- Color cesspool. Her males have a pronounced pink hue, females - bluish.
- The pubic bones of the hens are slightly apart .
There is still a way to distinguish between quail males and females by their behavior if there is time to observe the already feathered brood. Males occasionally emit loud, sharp cries. Females never scream like that. However, such a definition still requires observation and experience.
Some individual pedigree differences
The gender of some varieties of quail can be determined even shortly after two weeks of their existence by the difference in color. When choosing the chicks of the quail breeds “Japanese”, “Pharaoh” and “Estonian”, you need to pay attention to the “facade”. In males, the front of the head and chest are evenly brown; in hens, small black spots are scattered across the breast.
The golden manchurian male stands out well against the background of the “ladies” with the obligatory mask, which the hens lack.
Per diem quail: a national sign
The older the brood, the more the breeder asks for it. This is natural, since investments in the bird grow with each week spent on feeding it. Because farmers and seek to buy livestock early. Daily quail chicks, for example, are not much more expensive than eggs. And while natural losses are possible (no one is safe from the death of young animals), they will be much lower financially. Remember how much the quail eggs cost: four rubles at most, and they give you a guarantee that they are fertilized. A nestling grown up to 21 days will cost 20-30 rubles.
The method of distinguishing male quail from female, proposed by an experienced quailcatcher, was tested by him on personal experience and helps to accurately determine sex in 96 percent of cases. It is necessary to observe the daily chickens: the most vociferous grow in females. The method is not suitable for a more adult bird: in two weeks the behavior changes to an adult.