Predators of Quail Eggs, and the Evidence of the Remains: Implications for Nest Predation Studies

Abstract

We evaluated the consumption of Japanese Quail (Coturnix coturnix) eggs by captive reptiles, birds, and mammals in order to examine potential bias of nest predation experiments, and to determine whether predator identification through egg remains is reliable by the commonly used methods. Because none of the 86 individuals of 22 species of snakes consumed quail eggs in captivity, nest predation may be under-represented in artificial nest experiments. All three groups of predators left all types of egg remains, suggesting that researchers should refrain from classifying nest predators only hy egg remains. The presence of scratches on quail eggs could be considered as a potential tool for reducing small-mouthed mammal bias on predation estimates in small-sized eggs in nest predation experiments.