Oz Sandy

Oz Sandy is a sex-linked dominant mutation found in coturnix quail that causes the bird to be a light tan/grey color. (1) It similar in color to Egyptian Fee, though completely different inheritance. It is often confused with Oz Snowy, which is recessive. It also is different across countries, with breeders in the UK reporting different genotypes then Australia (2)(3). The Australian mutation (sometimes called Oz Sandy) has been the most studied, and thus is referenced here.

On Pharaoh, Oz Sandy looks similar to Egyptian Fee. Birds will be a greyish tan color, with little red on the hens and some copper color across the breast and face of cocks (1). It is hard to tell a Oz Snowy from an Oz Sandy on Pharaoh. Sandy will be very consistent across Pharoah. On Fawn, however, Snowy is completely different and will cause the bird to be a white bird with orange and black markings, similar to Pearl Fee (2). This is the easiest way to determine if a bird is Oz Sandy or Oz Snowy.

Because Oz Sandy is a sex-linked mutation, it can be used to create onetime batches were the chicks can be sexed at hatch with 100% accuracy. It is found in Australia, and has been said to also be in the United States and UK (3), however the lines outside of Australia are very different, with some breeders even reporting a recessive gene instead of dominant (3).

Breeding with Sandy: Sandy Male x Sandy Female = 100% Sandy chicks

Sandy Male x Clean Female = Sandy females, het. Sandy males

Clean Male x Sandy Female = 100% clean female chicks, 100% het. Sandy male chicks

Het. Sandy male x Sandy Female = 50% Sandy female chicks, 50% clean female chicks, 50% het. Sandy male chicks, 50% Sandy male chicks

Het. Sandy male x Clean Female = 50% clean female chicks, 50% Sandy female chicks, 50% het. Sandy male chicks, 50% clean male chicks.

Note: it is impossible to have a heterozygous female chick, as females can only have one Z chromosome, and the "pair" or the W chromosome is short, meaning it forces the recessive mutation to show even with only one copy. This is called hemizygous. Refer to the genetics series if you would like to read more.