The birds look so fragile — tiny legs, chubby bodies, easily held in one hand. But in the fighting ring, face to face, and cheered on by gamblers, quail can release a fury of feathers, beaks and claws when two aggressive males are forced to do battle.
Many Pakistanis take part in animal fighting as a form of entertainment — pitting dogs, chickens, bears and even eagles. Among the most popular, at least in the northwestern borderlands, are quail fights.
Keeping quail is a tradition said to be a centuries-old, part of the ethnic Pashtun culture. And it goes back further still: nearly 2,000 years ago, even the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius partook.
Quail fighting was banned in Afghanistan under Taleban rule, but since 2001, the pastime has been revived in Pashtun enclaves such as Kabul and Kandahar.
Across the border in Pakistan, quail fighting is embraced by largely older men who are proud to be part of what they see as a vanishing part of rural life.
“I have been keeping birds since before I had a mustache and beard,” said Dost Mohammad, about 75. The grey-haired, long-bearded farmer balanced a bright red bag on his left hand. In the dark underneath the heavy fabric, he gently cupped his prize quail.
Mohammad, who also owns peacocks and fighting chickens, was among several men who discussed bird fighting — some called it “wrestling” — in a small village near Mardan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. They showed how they handle and feed the birds, defending a practice seen as cruel by outsiders and animal rights activists.
It is legal to hunt and keep quails in Pakistan, although those who do so are required to get a license from wildlife officials. But gambling on the bouts is illegal, and raids by police are routine. Last month police busted nine gamblers and confiscated $ 80,000 in cash, a newspaper reported.
In the matches, two birds of equal size are thrust into a makeshift ring where they square off. When one bird runs away, the other is declared the winner. The fights usually last two or three minutes.
“Once there was a fight for 12 minutes,” Fazal Dayan, a farmer, reminisced while showing off his 2-year-old bird. Dayan, 53, is considered one of the most respected quail keepers in his village.
Proponents claim the hobby is harmless, that the birds are not killed or severely injured in battle as is often the case with other forms of animal fighting, most notably cockfighting and dog fighting.
“Sometimes the birds have small injuries after a match, but there has been no case in which a bird died,” Dayan said.
“The reason this tradition is diminishing is because of the highhandedness of police,” he said, contending that bird owners are sometimes harassed for bribes. “People can complain to the police but we are no danger.”
Bets can range from $ 5 to $ 5,000, the bird keepers said.
There are four kinds of fighting quail in this region: Black, red, green and brown, identified by the color of the feathers on the neck and chest. The handlers train male birds only. “Female bird is not for fighting,” said Dayan.
At a bout last week in a small village in the Charsadda district, dozens of men gathered round to watch the diminutive birds battle. The crowd broke into whoops and cheers when a brown-chested challenger gave up and fled from a black one.
Fights are organized on a specified day in various villages each week. Abdul Akbar, 40, a farmer who hosts his bout every Tuesday morning, estimated that 150 people regularly visit his fights, where 30 to 40 contests take place.
“We are not committing any crime,” said spectator Muhammad Zakir, 50, a farmer who came from another northwestern district. Zakir has kept birds since he was 15 and said he believes owners must keep their quails until death. “This is a hobby of peaceful people.”
But another local confided that it’s not unusual for shots to be fired in anger when a disgruntled loser is forced to make good on his wager.
