Genetic variation in a population of the wild quail Coturnix coturnix japonica

To investigate genetic variation and to compare it with those of domestic quail populations, enzymatic and non-enzymatic proteins in a wild quail population were examined electrophoretically. The wild quail population had a genetic variability considerably lower than those of domestic populations. The average heterozygosity estimated for 22 loci was 0.090 in the wild quail population.