Beasom, S.L.

Cain, J.R.

Texas A&M University

A Guide 
For Aging 
Scaled Quail 
B-1447 
June 1983 
The Texas Agricultural Experiment Station I Neville P. Clarke, Director 
Texas A&M University System I College Station, Texas 
COVER. Top: Adult scaled 
quail. Bottom: Hen and day-old 
chicks. 
ace 
1110 
§ 
1- 1RD J: 
~ 
w ;:: 
> 
BD 
0 
0 
m 
4D 
D 4 
AGE (WKS) 
Figure 1. Mean body weight of juvenile scaled quail 
from hatch to 22 weeks of age. 
Figure 2. Typical subadult scaled quail wing showing primary feathers 1-10 used for aging 
juveniles. Feathers 5 and 6 are measured in millimeters and lengths compared with measurements 
in Table 1. Primary covert feathers lie directly on top of the primaries; C indicates primary covert 5. 
A buff tip of C indicates a subadult covert feather. 
Figure 3. Male (left) and female scaled 
quail showing plumage differences on 
the cheek and throat. Males have yel-
lowish or cream colored feathers , 
whereas females have buff feathers 
with slate colored streaks. 
SM-5-83 
2 
A Guide for Aging Scaled Quail 
J. R. Cain and S. L. Beasom 
Texas Agricultural Experiment Station 
Scaled quail (Callipepla squamata) , 
also called blue quail or cotton tops, are 
native to the western half of Texas and 
Oklahoma, to southern Colorado and 
Arizona, and to a major portion of New 
Mexico and Mexico . They inhabit 
semiarid rangeland with moderate inter-
spersion of brush and avoid dense stands 
of grasses. Because of the unreliable na-
ture of rainfall in the region, reproductive 
success of quail fluctuates dramatically in 
the southwestern United States. 
Anyone concerned with quail breeding 
season phenology should be able to de-
termine the age of the juveniles, because 
age estimates are used throughout the 
summer to calculate hatching dates. 
Scaled quail chicks reach about 50 
percent of adult body weight by 6 weeks, 
and by 13 weeks they are 90 percent of 
mature weight (Fig. 1). However, varia-
bility in body weight between individuals, 
in addition to yearly differences in the 
food supply, precludes using weight as an 
accurate age indicator. Standard tech-
niques for aging quail rely instead on 
wing feather measurements. 
Quail progressively molt and-grow new 
wing feathers, and the growth rate of 
their primaries is consistent. Primaries 
and secondaries are numbered from the 
body outward according to their se-
quence of molt. It is possible to determine 
a quail's age by measuring the two outer-
most growing primary feathers, for exam-
ple 5 and 6 on the wing shown in Figure 
2. Measurements (in mm) are made with 
a thin plastic ruler from where the feather 
emerges from the skin to the tip. Either 
wing may be used , but consistently 
measuring the same side reduces varia-
bility. The measurements in Table 1, gen-
erally accurate to within one week of age, 
can then be used to age scaled quail -
provided you have a quail in hand. 
Using the photo comparisons in this 
bulletin, careful field observers should be 
able to estimate the age of juvenile quail 
almost as accurately, and capture is not 
necessary. Chicks from 1 to 12 weeks old 
are shown with mounted adults for size 
and feathering comparisons. 
In the fall and winter, subadult quail 
older than 20 weeks (either sex) can be 
easily distinguished from adults by ex-
amining the primary covert feathers of 
the wing (Fig. 2). The tips of primary 
coverts 1 through 7 are edged with buff 
color in subadults, whereas they are all 
gray in adult birds. 
Scaled quail have only subtle differ-
ences between sexes: male body weights 
average 10 percent heavier than females, 
and males have slightly larger topknots. 
The only reliable distinguishing charac-
teristic is feathering dimorphism of the 
cheek and throat area: males have yel-
lowish or cream colored feathers, where-
as females have buff feathers with slate 
colored streaks (Fig. 3). 
Acknowledgement: This project was partially supported by the USDA Rocky Mountain Forest 
and Range Experiment Station. The authors appreciate the technical assistance of David Smith, 
Roger Lien, and James Lee. Taxidermy was courtesy of Joe T. Hibler, Kingsville, Texas. 
3 
1 WEEK 
Entirely covered with natal 
down; single brown stripe evi-
dent on head and short, downy 
topknot; flight feathers lf•- 1/2' 
long; 2%-3" tall; cannot fly . 
2 WEEKS 
Spotty; long downy topknot; few 
scattered contour feathers: tail 
feathers 1/2' long and even with 
wing tips at rest; 3 1/2-3%" tall; 
flies short distances. 
3 WEEKS 
Spotty; scattered contour feath-
ers; topknot 1/2 filled with con-
tour feathers; tail feathers %" 
long and extending '/•-1/2' past 
wing tip at rest; first four juvenal 
primaries nearly grown; 33!.-4" 
tall; flies quite well. 
4 
5 
4 WEEKS 
Juvenal contour feathers pre-
dominate back and sides; downy 
feathers predominate belly and 
head; topknot mostly filled with 
juvenal feathers ; tail feathers 
11/4' long and extending %-1" 
past wing tip; juvenal primaries 
nearly complete; 4-41/z'' tall; flies 
nearly as well as adult. 
5 WEEKS 
Almost % adult size ; juvenal 
contour feathers streaked and 
predominate entire body; down 
predominates sides of head; 
gray topknot %- %" tall and 
complete; brown stripe on nape 
of neck still clearly visible; tail 
feathers extend 1 '14-1 %" past 
wing tips; juvenal primaries com-
plete; 5-51/z'' tall; flies as well as 
adult. 
6 WEEKS 
Streaked; juvenal contours pre-
dominate body and head; no 
brown stripe on back of head, 
but a buff stripe extends from 
eye to neck; tail feathers extend 
2" past wing tips and nearly 
reach ground; 5 1/2--6" tall. 
7 WEEKS 
About 3!. adult size; plumage 
rough as postjuvenal molt be-
gins; may have 1-2 adult con-
tours emerging on sides of 
breast; topknot still gray; tail 
feathers extend 2W' past wing 
tip; &-OW' tall . 
8 WEEKS 
Distinct row of gray-blue scaled 
adult contour feathers on sides 
of breast; topknot 1/2 filled with 
white adult feathers; tail ragged 
with postjuvenal molt; 6lf-c-7" 
tall. 
9 WEEKS 
Several rows of scaled adult con-
tour feathers on sides of breast, 
also scattered blue contours on 
back; topknot approximately % 
adult size; center tail feathers (re-
trices) short and gray, outer re-
trices mottled; adult height and 
nearly as heavy. 
6 
7 
10 WEEKS 
About 50 percent adult contour 
feathers on sides and back; ju-
venal feathers predominate bel-
ly; scattered adult plumage 
among wing coverts; central 6-8 
juvenal tail retrices absent or 
growing adult gray but appear 
much shorter than outer two ju-
venal feathers. 
11 WEEKS 
Brownish juvenal feathers 
around eyes, otherwise gray or 
scaled contour feathers pre-
dominate belly, neck, head, and 
wings; topknot 90 percent adult 
size ; central developing tail 
feathers equal in length to outer 
two persisting juvenal feathers. 
12 WEEKS 
Difficult to distinguish from 
adults by gross observation ; 
topknot like adults; contour 
feathers entirely adult: scattered 
juvenal coverts may remain on 
wings; adult tail feathers at least 
1" longer than remaining two 
juvenal feathers. 
TABLE 1. RANGE OF PRIMARY FEATHER LENGTHS (IN MM) USED TO DETERMINE AGE OF JUVENILE SCALED QUAIL REFER TO TEXT ON 
PAGE 1 FOR DETAILS. 
Age 
(weeks) JP6 JP1 JPs JP9 JPw pl Pz p3 p4 Ps p6 p7 Ps 
1 18-30 0-16 
2 42-52 33-48 6-20 
3 56-67 53-63 30-42 0-14 
4 68-74 60-70 35-49 21 -31 0-14 4-22 Juvenile primary feathers 
5 76-85 70-76 57-67 30-44 18-26 18-36 4-24 still present 
6 85-88 77-83 74-80 49-61 31 -45 48-62 31 -51 14-30 
7 82-86 79-87 63-73 46-58 65-71 58-70 38-60 8-32 
8 84-88 85-91 75-81 58-68 70-74 71 -79 63-77 35-63 9-31 
co 9 85-88 86-91 81 -85 67-73 71 -75 73-79 78-82 64-SO 32-58 4-26 
10 82-86 70-74 71 -75 75-79 80-86 80-88 64-76 24-48 
11 Juvenile primary 83-87 71-75 72-76 76-80 82-86 87-93 80-90 49-71 8-30 
12 growth completed 84-87 72-76 73-76 76-80 83-87 89-93 88-94 73-87 27-53 
13 84-87 89-93 91 -95 86-92 47-73 0-11 
14 92-96 90-96 70-88 5-25 
15 92-96 92-96 84-92 15-45 
16 ( 92-96 89-93 34-64 
17 90-94 58-82 
18 First winter primary 91 -95 76-90 
19 growth completed 91-95 84-92 
20 87-93 
21 89-93 
22 90-94 


English

A Guide for Aging Scaled Quail.

https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/bitstream/1969.1/150034/8/Bull1447a.pdf

A Guide for Aging Scaled Quail.

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