New (unusual) Button Quail Chick

[DK newbie]

The tuxedos (white on the belly and black on top) can be difficult to sex. I have one roo though, and despite being white on his belly he still has rust colored feathers. Pic attached.
Some males are white around the tail but still have some rust colored feathers further up their sides.
Lastly, I'm working on a theory that you can actually sex buttons by looking at their vent. My sample size is pretty small still, and I haven't tried it on a bird I couldn't already sex by color, but it seems to me that the males have a sort of 'plate' by their vent - like a piece of cartilage forming two rounded corners of a rectangle at the edge of the vent.. I should probably try to get a picture next time I handle one.

 

[AQuailNamedFrancis]

Hello! Sorry guys this morning was just insanity. But, Here I am back home from school. Anyways here are the pics.

The first 2 is this cute little black colored guy. he has lots of red feathers in the back... Is he male??

Pics 3 and 4 is my little white one. Btw What is that silver on its head??? I literally just noticed that today????? And no red feathers.

Also last thing... Does anyone know how to hold them the best way?? I need to learn a better technic. Thanks

 

[JaeG]

Hello! Sorry guys this morning was just insanity. But, Here I am back home from school. Anyways here are the pics.

The first 2 is this cute little black colored guy. he has lots of red feathers in the back... Is he male??

Pics 3 and 4 is my little white one. Btw What is that silver on its head??? I literally just noticed that today????? And no red feathers.

Also last thing... Does anyone know how to hold them the best way?? I need to learn a better technic. Thanks

Red is an exclusively male colour in quail so I'd say the first is a boy. Probably a blueface but hopefully @DK newbie can help. Your second is cute with the silver cap!

As to holding them, I hold them like you do a parakeet when you don't want to be bitten! They seem to have trouble wriggling out when their head is between two of your fingers. They are slippery little things!

 

[AQuailNamedFrancis]

Thank you so much! Do you think the white one is a female??

 

[JaeG]

Thank you so much! Do you think the white one is a female??

I suspect it may be one you have to wait and see on. We don't have whites or tuxedos here, or blueface, or red breasted, or pearls!

 

[AQuailNamedFrancis]

Ok well thank you for the help. Also why do you guys not have white, tuexedos, blueface, redbreasted, and pearl in New Zealand??

 

[JaeG]

Ok well thank you for the help. Also why do you guys not have white, tuexedos, blueface, redbreasted, and pearl in New Zealand??

For a long time now there have been strictly no imports of birds, dead or alive, to try and protect all of our native birds, many of them critically endangered and unique. Only eggs for the poultry industry are imported and they come from strictly controlled/quarantined environments and are held in strictly controlled/quarantined environments here. We have less bird/poultry diseases here but that also means the birds we have is all we have - no new genetics.

 

[AQuailNamedFrancis]

Well. It makes sense. But, I'm sure it kinda sucks. But then again I would hate to see other species die. Anyways . thanks again for the help.

 

[JaeG]

My flaky Button girl who was on eggs, due in a couple of days, decided she'd had enough. Her previous hatch she only had one viable egg at the end of it. She let that chick hatch and wander off. I found it in time to warm it, then gave it back to her, only to discover when I next checked that she'd squashed it with one of the dead eggs!!!

I commented to hubby that I didn't think she was going to get back on her nest. My hubby (who does not really like the birds) said I should just put them in the incubator! You don't have to tell me twice! (Just don't tell him I've also popped 18 fresh Button eggs in there). They won't all be fertile anyway...

Anyway, here are a couple more photos for your enjoyment:

This one is with the flash:

This one is without and shows their colours better:

 

[007Sean]

Keep the pics coming. those colors, Caramel and Cinnamon.