Celadon (Blue Egg Layers) Coturnix Quail
Not a feather color — Celadon is the recessive gene that makes hens lay BLUE eggs. Any plumage can carry it, and a basket of robin's-egg-blue quail eggs sells itself.
What they look like
Celadon describes the egg, not the bird: hens carrying two copies of the ce gene lay pale blue to blue-green shells, some with faint speckling. The birds themselves come in whatever varieties the breeder built the line on — Pharaoh-colored celadon layers are common, but so are golds, tibetans, and tuxedos.
How the genetics work
The ce gene is recessive: a hen needs two copies to lay blue, and roosters carry it invisibly. Celadon × celadon breeds true for blue eggs. A celadon hen's daughters by a non-carrier male all carry one copy and lay normal eggs — which is how blue 'disappears' for a generation and returns.
Sexing Celadon (Blue Egg Layers)s
Whatever the plumage allows — the egg gene doesn't help or hurt. On wild-pattern celadon lines you can feather-sex; on solid colors you can't.
Eggs, size & production
Lay rate and size match the underlying line; only the shell color changes. Blue eggs command premium prices at farmers markets and hatching-egg sales — often the single most profitable trait in backyard quail.
Who this variety is for
Egg sellers (the blue basket stops market traffic), families who want the daily Easter-egg moment, and breeders — celadon hatching eggs consistently outsell everything else.
Before you buy
Buy from lines where BOTH parents are proven celadon (true-breeding pens), or you'll hatch carriers that never lay blue. Shell shade varies hen to hen — 'sky blue' photos may be the line's best, not its average.
Verify with your own eyes before paying celadon prices: reputable sellers photograph the actual breeding pen's egg basket, not stock photos.
Keep or breed Celadon (Blue Egg Layers)?
Show off your birds and compare notes in the free Quail Keeper Community — keepers post their coveys, hatch results, and honest line reviews. Joining also unlocks the Quail Keeper Max app free.
Planning a Celadon (Blue Egg Layers) breeding project?
Quail Keeper Max has a built-in color genetics calculator — pick two parents and see what the hatch should throw — plus pedigree tracking, breeding pair records, and hatch-rate stats so you can actually see which pairings work. It's the tool this guide's genetics notes come from.
Try the genetics calculator free →Free plan included · No credit card required
Related varieties
A note from one keeper to another: variety names in Coturnix are not tightly standardized — different breeders' lines under the same name can differ in shade, size, and how crosses behave, and several newer varieties are still being mapped by the breeding community. Treat this guide as a working keeper's reference, buy from breeders who know their lines' genetics, and trust real hatch results over any label.