# Antipredator Response in Domestic Japanese Quail and Game-Farmed Quail

## TL;DR

This study compares the fear responses of game-farmed and Japanese quails to human and predator threats, finding that game-farmed quails are more fearful.

## Contribution

The study identifies a genetic basis for antipredator behavior in quails and suggests that selecting for fear traits could improve game-farmed quail utility.

## Key findings

- Game-farmed quails moved at a greater distance from humans than Japanese quails.
- Japanese quail females showed stronger antipredator responses to simulated predators.
- Tonic immobility was induced more easily in game-farmed quails than in Japanese quails.

## Abstract

Currently, game farms usually raise a so-called game-farmed quail, which generally results from hybrid quails (Coturnix coturnix × Coturnix japonica) that are then backcrossed with males of the European common species (Coturnix coturnix). These farm-reared quails are being released in hunting preserves so as to counterbalance the decline of the wild stock of European common quails. However, the birds released are not really appreciated by hunters because of their calmness and poor ability to fly, which these birds owe to the fact of descending from domestic Japanese quails (Coturnix japonica). Additionally, the release in the wild of Japanese quails or their hybrids with the European common quail is banned in several European countries. Indeed, the introgression of alleles from Japanese quails into the gene pool of wild populations of European common quails poses a serious threat to the genetic integrity and the long-term preservation of the native populations since the genetic dilution of alleles specific to the native quails may affect their behaviour and adaptability. Still, this study has shown that game-farmed quails display a more fearful behaviour than Japanese ones when confronted with human beings, and that high intra-species variability exists regarding the avoidance response of quails. In summary, these results support that a genetic basis exists for the fear response of quails and that, as long as genetic integrity of native populations is ensured, the selection of birds with fear and antipredator behaviour similar to that of quails born and living in the wild could be advantageous for game purposes.

Game-farmed quails that are currently raised in captivity and released in hunting preserves are not attractive for many hunters because of their low antipredator instinct, which is due to the fact that in most cases, these farm-reared quails are hybrids between European common (Coturnix coturnix) and Japanese (Coturnix japonica) quails, with the latter having been selectively bred for docility. This study aimed at assessing the antipredator response of game-farmed and Japanese quails by performing three tests: human approach test, simulated aerial predator approach test and tonic immobility test. Thirty game-farmed quails (average body weight: 133 g) and thirty Japanese quails (323 g) were subjected to the tests. For each genotype of quail, fifteen males and fifteen females were used. In the human approach test, the distance at which quails moved was greater for game-farmed quails than for Japanese ones (37.4 vs. 19.6 m, p < 0.001). In the simulated aerial predator approach test, female quails of the Japanese species crouched down at the longest distance with respect to the predator (9.83 m), whereas no significant difference existed for this trait among the other three groups (6.84 m, on average). The percentage of quails flying when the predator got closer was higher for the Japanese species than for the game-farmed quails (23.3 vs. 3.33%, p = 0.023). Fewer inductions were needed to cause tonic immobility in the game-farmed quails than in the Japanese ones (3.10 vs. 4.10, p = 0.009), but then, the duration of the tonic immobility response did not differ significantly between the two genotypes. No effect of sex was detected in the human approach and tonic immobility tests. In conclusion, as compared with Japanese quails, game-farmed quails showed more fearful behaviour when confronted with a human being.