Adrenal Responses of California Quail Subjected to Various Physiologic Stimuli.∗

Summary Adrenal responses of pen-raised and wild California valley quail subjected to caging, cold, cortisol, and ACTH treatments have been studied and compared. Groups of pen-raised and wild birds showed no consistent nor significant differences in either adrenal weight or histometry. Spleen weights were highly variable. No histologic evidence of thyroid activation was seen in birds subjected to cold. Experimental treatments, potentially capable of causing marked adrenal responses in common laboratory mammals, were relatively ineffectual in eliciting adrenal response in the quail. It is suggested that the adrenal, and possibly the thyroid, may be comparatively non-reactive in quail as compared with laboratory mammals.