Kinds of quail

[Penny Hen]

I was reading some of the threads here on the types of quail. Over on Ebay they have some Mexican speckled and some TN Reds but I haven't heard anything about them here. Dose anyone know what they are like?

 

[TwoCrows]

I don't recommend Tennessee Red Bobs or the Mexican Bobs to anyone that has never raised quail. They are quite the challenge to a beginner. Coturnix are a good starter bird to learn from.

 

[Penny Hen]

Well I saw that the TN reds were not Coturnix but the Mexicans (to my untrained eye) looked like a variant of Coturnix. Are Snowflakes hard to work with also? What is it that make them (the Mexicans and TN Reds) so difficult? On Ebay they have a collection of books on disk about different Turkeys, and another about game birds. Is that worthwhile material or worse is it pirated material that I shouldn't patronize?

 

[TwoCrows]

I know nothing about these books you talk of on Ebay, but it never hurts to read about poultry. The more you know the better.

The Mexican Spotted are a mutation of the Bobwhite. So are the Snowflake. With the exception of the Snowflake Bobs, most Bobwhites are a bit more of a challenge to keep. They are nervous, flighty, flush easily and do not care for human interaction. Most people that keep quail want some interaction with these birds. Bobwhites can be aggressive to other Bobs and you as well. During the breeding season, they are paired off one male to one female. You can not keep trio's or pairs together as they can kill each other. And to give each pair room during this time, you need a lot of space. If you keep them all in a large enough pen or aviary, it is possible to keep a pair or two together. However during the off breeding season, you can keep them all together. You can not handle Bobs at all. Causes too much stress and they can injure themselves easily. And Bobs of any mutation require 4 times or more the space as Coturnix.

Snowflake Bobs are a bit the exception and are less aggressive and tend to be a bit calmer than most Bobs. So if you really want to go with Bobs, go with the snowflake. They are gorgeous as well.