Japanese quail

The Japanese quail was formally described by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck and the German ornithologist Hermann Schlegel in 1848 and given the trinomial name Coturnix vulgaris japonica. This species is now placed in the genus Coturnix that was introduced in 1764 by the French naturalist François Alexandre Pierre de Garsault. The Japanese quail was formerly considered to be conspecific with the common quail (Coturnix coturnix). The range of the two taxa meet in Mongolia and near Lake Baikal without apparent interbreeding. In addition, the offspring of crosses in captivity show reduced fertility. The Japanese quail is therefore now treated as a separate species. It is considered to be monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. ==Description==

, Taiwan The morphology of the Japanese quail differs depending on its stage in life. As chicks, both male and female individuals exhibit the same kind of plumage and coloring. Their heads are tawny in color, with small black patches littering the area above the beak. Both male and female adults exhibit predominantly brown plumage. However, markings on the throat and breast, as well as the particular shade of brown of the plumage, can vary quite a bit. ==Distribution and habitat==

Populations of the Japanese quail are known to mainly inhabit East Asia and Russia. This includes India, Korea, Japan, and China. Though several resident populations of this quail have been shown to winter in Japan, most migrate south to areas such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and southern China. This quail has also been found to reside in many parts of Africa, including Tanzania, Malawi, Kenya, Namibia, Madagascar, and the area of the Nile River Valley extending from Kenya to Egypt. Thus, its natural habitats include grassy fields, bushes along the banks of rivers, and agricultural fields that have been planted with crops such as oats, rice, and barley. It has also been reported to prefer open habitats such as steppes, meadows, and mountain slopes near a water source. ==Behaviour and ecology==

Normally, the Japanese quail has been considered to possess an underdeveloped sense of taste, this being evidenced by their inability to distinguish different kinds of carbohydrates presented to them. However, studies have shown that a limited ability to taste is indeed present. Evidence for this includes quail individuals exhibiting preferential choice of sucrose-containing solutions over simple distilled water and the avoidance of salty solutions. Japanese quails show peak breeding activity during the summer season, when testes increase in size and testosterone hormone concentrations hit their peak. The Japanese quail exhibits a quite distinct and specific mating ritual. First, the male grabs the neck of the female and mounts her. After mounting the female, the male extends his cloaca by curving his back in an attempt to initiate cloacal contact between him and the female. If cloacal contact is achieved, insemination of the female will be exhibited by distinguishable foam present in the female's cloaca. After successfully mating with a female, the male characteristically performs a distinctive strut. Females will either facilitate the mating attempts of the male by remaining still and squatting in order to ease the access of the male to her cloaca or impede the attempts of the male by standing tall and running away from him. Females can also induce the initial sexual interactions by walking in front of a male and crouching. Japanese quail females carry out most of the incubation of the eggs, becoming increasingly intolerant of the male throughout the incubation process. Eventually, the female will drive the male away before the eggs hatch. Thus, the females also provide all of the parental care to the newly hatched young. Egg weight, color, shape, and size can vary greatly among different females of a Japanese quail population; however, these characteristics are quite specific and consistent for any given female. Eggs are generally mottled with a background color ranging from white to blue to pale brown. Depending on the strain of the Japanese quail, eggs can weigh anywhere from 8 to 13 grams, though the accepted average weight is 10 grams. Age seems to play a role in the size of eggs produced as older females tend to lay larger eggs. Feeding The diet of the Japanese quail includes many different types of grass seed such as white millet and panicum. They also feed upon a variety of insects, their larvae, and other small invertebrates. The Japanese quail mainly eats and drinks at the beginning and end of the day: behavior shown to closely follow the photoperiod. However, they will still eat and drink throughout the day as well. ==Relationship to humans==

Domestication , India The earliest records of domesticated Japanese quail populations are from 12th-century Japan, but some evidence indicates that the species was actually domesticated as early as the 11th century. These birds were originally bred as songbirds, and they were thought to have been regularly used in song contests. Animal scientists at Texas A&M University have bred a strain of white Japanese quail, which are now sold across the United States as "A&M" quail. These quail are heavy-muscles and white-feathered, often with a small patch of brown feathers above the eyes. The white feathers and light skin of this breed gives the flesh the uniform, light color preferred by consumers. Research Interest in the Japanese quail as a research animal greatly increased after 1957 due to groups at the University of California and Auburn University, who proposed its value in biomedical research. It is now widely used for research purposes in state, federal, university, and private laboratories. Fields in which C. japonica is widely used include genetics, nutrition, physiology, pathology, embryology, cancer, behavior, and the toxicity of pesticides. In 1979, Soviet scientists transported fertilized Japanese quail eggs to space aboard the Soyuz 32. The goal was to study embryo developments in a zero-gravity environment. The experiment showed that the eggs developed more slowly and with increased deformities. Japanese quail eggs have since orbited the Earth in several Soviet and Russian spacecraft, including the Bion 5 satellite and the Salyut 6 and Mir space stations. In March 1990, eggs on Mir were successfully incubated and hatched. Between 1995 and 1996, researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, worked with the Russian and American space program to hatch additional Japanese quail eggs on Mir. Their initial experiment was successful, with 82 percent hatchability, the same rate seen in a control group of eggs hatched on Earth under lab conditions. The researchers did encounter challenges with providing the quail with sufficient water in space, since quail normally rely on gravity to drink water via drip waterers. To address this problem, the quail hatched in space were given gel water blocks. == See also ==