Quail have remarkably fast lifecycles:
Eggs hatch after just 17 days, the chicks start growing feathers after their first few days of life, they then start laying at 6-8 weeks old, lay 280-320 eggs a year for 18 months and die after a few years.
We keep two different breeds of quail:
Japanese:
Dark Brown & yellow speckled
Lay approximately 280 eggs per year
Larger than Italian quail
Italian:
Cream with brown speckles and a coloured ring around the neck (brown for males, black for females)
Lay approximately 320 eggs per year
Smaller than Japanese quail, but lay the same size eggs