Can you tell the difference between coturnix and bobwhite at a day old?

[loves2hatch]

I have 2 different breeds of quail in the incubator. Snowflake & Butler bobwhite; and mixed Coturnix. Do the bob's and the cot's have enough of a different look that I will be able to tell the difference right away just by looking at them?
I put them in the incubator so that they would all hatch the same day.
Pictures of them together would help if you have them.

 

[Fat Daddy]

You will have no trouble telling the difference. This is even more true if you set them all today.... the snow flakes will be lighter than the butlers and the coturnix will have hatched 5 days before the bobs.... Bobs take 23 days and the cot are closer to 17-18 days.... you can always tell the bobs anyway thou. They will have a brown patch on the top of their head that comes to a point. It gives them a evil little look if you pay attention....

 

[loves2hatch]

You will have no trouble telling the difference. This is even more true if you set them all today.... the snow flakes will be lighter than the butlers and the coturnix will have hatched 5 days before the bobs.... Bobs take 23 days and the cot are closer to 17-18 days.... you can always tell the bobs anyway thou. They will have a brown patch on the top of their head that comes to a point. It gives them a evil little look if you pay attention....

So I should be able to tell the difference even if the cots have mixed parents of Tuxedo, A&M, Italian & Tibetan?
Will the snowflakes also have a brown patch on their head that comes to a point?
I set the them at different times knowing the incubation time of each. They should all hatch the 22/23rd of this month. I put the bob's in on 4-29-15 in the evening and the cots this morning 5-5-15. The cots seemed to hatch earlier then 18 days for me in the past. I was hoping they would all hatch the same day.
Then I realized I may not be able to tell them apart.

 

[Fat Daddy]

Yes, you will be able to tell when you really look at them. just a glance and they look all alike, but when you look close, the difference will be clear... The wild type cots are the only ones that will even be close. the mixed ones will be clear, jumbo whites will be yellow, tux will have "eye brows" tibetans will be darker.... The cots will grow much faster too. You will be fine. good luck

 

[dc3085]

Once you see the beak on a bob compared to beak on a cot you can't help but see the differences. Bobs have a shorter somewhat hooked beak and cots will have a straight tapered beak.

Youll need to brood the bobs and cots separately to avoid issues. When chicks are hot they fight more, by the time your bobs hatch the cots will be a few days old and almost ready for the heat to be lowered to 90. When bobs hatch they need to be kept at 97* f. Temp difference aside its just too easy for chicks of different ages to hurt each other.

 

[WaterfowlWierdo]

Once you see the beak on a bob compared to beak on a cot you can't help but see the differences. Bobs have a shorter somewhat hooked beak and cots will have a straight tapered beak.

Youll need to brood the bobs and cots separately to avoid issues. When chicks are hot they fight more, by the time your bobs hatch the cots will be a few days old and almost ready for the heat to be lowered to 90. When bobs hatch they need to be kept at 97* f. Temp difference aside its just too easy for chicks of different ages to hurt each other.

Dang it DC you beat me to saying it! But yeah, beak difference is obvious if you pay attention. Stripes are different as well. The bobs should be a little smaller when hatching too, even my butlers are smaller than cot chicks. And yes, bobs are much more sensitive to lighting and temp than a coturnix will ever be. Use an infrared light on the bobs to help with aggression, Ive also notices that having button quail in with bobs helps too, especially if they are good moms.

 

[loves2hatch]

Thanks All, That's great news!
I'm planning on separating them in 3 different brooders/Rubbermaid containers. Bulters in one, snowflakes in one and cots in another.
I only have 26 eggs total; 8 cots, 8 butlers and 10 snowflake. Of course, this all depends on how many snow flake and bulters hatch. I may put those bobs together if I only get a couple of each.
I won't have them very long they are going to my dad's little farm in a few days to a week after they hatch. But yes, the cots definitely will be housed separate that's why I wanted to know if I could tell the difference in their looks right away. Otherwise I was going to try and figure out how to separate them in the incubator when hatch time came around.



Thanks again all for your help.

 

[loves2hatch]

Quote: which kind/brand of infrared bulb would you use? I brood in plastic RuberMaid with two sides cut out of the lid and wire on top I set the lamp fixtures. a 60 watt bulb heats it nicely.
I'm looking into the infrared ceramic heat emitter bulbs but I know nothing about them. Do they give off and spread out the heat as a 60 watt bulb? would they be to hot for the plastic brooders. I also have the red flood light type bulbs that are 250 watt but they would be too hot for my indoor brooder. We use them when they get a bit older and are moved to the garage in an all wire cage.
I found these three from zoo med which would heat the best, be the least fire hazard and avoid pecking? the 3 types of bulbs:
Zoo Med ReptiCare Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter 60 Watts


Zoo Med Nocturnal Infrared Incandescent Heat Lamp 50 Watts


Zoo Med Nightlight Red Reptile Bulb 60 Watts

 

[WaterfowlWierdo]

which kind/brand of infrared bulb would you use? I brood in plastic RuberMaid with two sides cut out of the lid and wire on top I set the lamp fixtures. a 60 watt bulb heats it nicely. I'm looking into the infrared ceramic heat emitter bulbs but I know nothing about them. Do they give off and spread out the heat as a 60 watt bulb? would they be to hot for the plastic brooders. I also have the red flood light type bulbs that are 250 watt but they would be too hot for my indoor brooder. We use them when they get a bit older and are moved to the garage in an all wire cage. I found these three from zoo med which would heat the best, be the least fire hazard and avoid pecking? the 3 types of bulbs:
[COLOR=C45500]Zoo Med ReptiCare Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter 60 Watts[/COLOR]

[COLOR=C45500]Zoo Med Nocturnal Infrared Incandescent Heat Lamp 50 Watts[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0066C0]Zoo Med Nightlight Red Reptile Bulb 60 Watts[/COLOR]

I don't use the ceramic bulbs I use infrared heat lamps which looks like a red light. It is gonna heat way more than a 60 watt will so raise it up. But bobs are very sensitive

 

[loves2hatch]

I'm just using a red heat bulb instead of the infrared. I have an infrared but it is clear. so I thought the red bulb would be better. Seems to work fine, so far.
I had 5 coturnix hatch and 2 bobwhites. The bobwhites needed help they were positioned wrong. I figure the cause maybe for not being turned for the first 2 weeks of incubation? My stupid error.
I have 1 snowflake and 1 Butler. So, I had no problem telling the difference since I helped and they hatched later.

But yep the bobwhites were way smaller then the coturnix and have a different shaped head and beak, kind of rounder or something. The coturnix ended up hatching on time day 17 and 18. But the bobwhites didn't cooperate, I helped them out on day 26 by popping the top and loosely wrapping them in a wet paper towel, leaving them in the shell to get out on their own.
The coturnix are now at my dad's. They look so huge compared to the bobwhites. The bobwhites are 1 week and 1 day old today. I decided to keep them for a little while longer. They are doing fine in my basement. The butler is about 1 1/2 times bigger then the snowflake but they get a long fine. No pecking at each other.