Hi.
Is anyone able to tell me if it is possible to have two pairs of Californian Quail within a single aviary?
A month or so ago I bought a pair of Californian Quail, and they settled into the aviary very nicely. Their calls attracted the wild quail to the house surrounds and things were just lovely. Then my female inside the aviary somehow paired with a wild male on the outside of the avairy! The male who came with her was rejected!
The female would spend all day walking to and fro inside the aviary trying to get close to the wild male who was climbing on the roof, over the hedging, etcetera, back and forth trying to get close to her. Eventually I took pity on the two of them. I opened the outside of the aviary double doors, he walked inside quite happily, I closed the door behind him, and then let him into the interior of the aviary. He and the hen are very happy together.
There was a brief period of chasing between the males when the wild male was introduced but things have settled down now.
The rejected domestic male is now standing in the corner on his own.
In order of preference I think my options are: a) get the rejected male a new mate and have two pairs in the aviary if they are likely to be able to peacefully co-exist, b) release the rejected male, c) eat the rejected male for dinner, yum yum.
Can someone tell me if my 'option a' will work?
Also, what area would be advisable per pair of these birds? My aviary is 4m x4m, half covered, and well planted.
Many thanks for reading
Megan