Help with coturnix quails?

[Kitsune3524]

So I have two quails that I'm not 100% sure about the genders of. I've suspected that my oldest is male because of the noises he's making. (They're only 1 day apart lol). I'm not sure about the younger one but since its quieter and calmer we think it's probably a girl. However, the male has been sort of attacking her. I separated them and put the male outside and kept the female in with me since they just recently turned old enough to go outside but I haven't set up the cage yet. He seemed to love it outside and I planned to move the other one in a few days. My mom's friend told her last night that once two quails pair up when one dies the other one dies pretty soon after and I shouldn't separate them for too long so I brought her out today. As soon as I put her in he grabbed some feathers on the back of her neck and held them with his beak and chased her around. I just wanna make sure it's not them fighting and maybe it has to do with breeding or playing or something cuz like I said im not sure if they're both males, they've been together since birth and never really fought.

 

[le_bwah]

The feather-puller is very likely male. He's probably just trying to mate her (or him). How old are your quail, and what species? As soon as she starts laying eggs (6-8, maybe even 10 weeks old), she'll be more receptive to him and squat without being afraid. If they both wind up being male, they should settle down eventually as long as you don't introduce any females.

It's true that you shouldn't keep them separated; quail are flock birds, and being alone is stressful for them. What species are they? If they aren't buttons, it's also important to have more than one female per male.