Article We identified a growth hormone secretagogue-receptor (GHS-R) for ghrelin (GRLN) in the Japanese quail, and examined relationship between its receptor distribution and the effects of ghrelin on the gastrointestinal tract of the quail. GHS-R expression and GRLN-induced response were also investigated in the chicken and compared with quail. Several types of GHS-R, namely GHS-R1a-L, GHS-R1a-S, GHS-R1aV, GHS-R1b, GHS-R1bV and GHS-R1tv-like receptor, were identified in quail cerebellum cDNA. Amino acid sequence of quail GHS-R1a-L was 98% identical to that of chicken GHS-R1a. GHS-R1a mRNA was expressed heterogeneously in the quail gastrointestinal tract with a high expression level in the colon, moderate levels in the esophagus and crop, and low levels in the proventriculus, gizzard and small intestine. The region-specific expression pattern was almost the same as that in the chicken. Chicken and quail GRLN caused contraction in the crop, proventriculus and colon of both the quail and chicken, whereas the small intestine was less sensitive. However, the contractile efficacy was more potent in the chicken than in the quail. Chicken motilin (MTL), another gut peptide, structurally resemble to GRLN, caused marked contraction in the small intestine of both the quail and chicken, and the region-specific effect of MTL was opposite to that of GRLN. In conclusion, GRLN mainly induces the contractile responses of the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract and MTL stimulates motility of the middle intestine in both the quail and chicken. Regions in which GRLN acts were consistent with the distribution of GHS-R1a mRNA, but the contractile efficacy was different in the quail and chicken. These results suggest a species-specific contribution of GRLN in the regulation of avian gastrointestinal contractility.