Shim and Vohra (1984) presented a comprehensive review. Data appearing since 1984 have supported the values listed in the 1984 edition for protein (Sinha and Verma, 1984; Steigner, 1990) and for total sulfur amino acids (TSAA; Shrivastav and Panda, 1987) for the starting and growing period. In the instance of protein, however, Steigner (1990) reported that a strain of Japanese quail selected for rapid growth required a greater dietary protein concentration than did random-bred quail. Similarly, information provided by Shim and Lee (1984, 1988) and by Shim and Chen (1989) showed that the dietary requirements for lysine and TSAA for breeding quail in the 1984 edition were appropriate in relation to the stated metabolizable energy contents of the diet. The lack of data to further define requirements or to corroborate single sets of observations (Appendix Table A-8) on requirements of Japanese quail, especially breeding quail, necessitates the continued listing of a large number of tentative requirement values in Table 6-2.

The committee has made few changes in the nutrient specifications for Bobwhite quail (Table 6-3). Its reevaluation of the data (Appendix Table A-9) used to establish the previous requirements resulted in some modifications in protein, TSAA, calcium, and phosphorus recommendations for starting-growing Bobwhite quail. As with other game birds reared commercially, Bobwhite quail grown for game-release farms should be fed diets of relatively low energy content during the growing period to prevent excessive fattening.