 The Bible may contain an early account of rhabdomyolysis . In Numbers 11 : 4 – 6 @,@ 31 – 33 , the Pentateuch says that the Jews demanded meat while traveling in the desert ; God sent quail in response to the complaints , and people ate large quantities of quail meat . A plague then broke out , killing numerous people . Rhabdomyolysis after consuming quail was described in more recent times and called <unk> ( after Coturnix , the main quail genus ) . Migrating quail consume large amounts of hemlock , a known cause of rhabdomyolysis . 
