Light Intensity and Sex Ratio Effects on Egg Production, Egg Quality Characteristics, and Fertility in Breeder Pekin Ducks

Abstract

A flock of 520, 11-wk-old breeder Pekin ducklings was raised in 20 floor pens in a curtain-sided poultry house under decreasing day lengths. At 22 wk of age, the ducklings were photostimulated (16 h of light/day) with a combination of natural daylight and artificial light. After dusk, half of the ducklings were exposed to 10 lx of incandescent (IN) light and the other half were maintained under 172 lx of high-pressure sodium (HPS) light. In addition, each light treatment consisted of an equal number of pens with two different sex ratios, 22 hens:4 drakes (15% males) and 21 hens:5 drakes (19% males).Egg production, egg quality characteristics, and fertility were monitored from 22 to 52 wk of age. Ducklings housed under 172 lx of HPS light exhibited significantly (P ≤ .05) greater egg production between 23 and 34 wk of age. Egg weight, shell weight, and shell thickness were not consistently affected by the different light treatments or sex ratios. The sex ratios did not affect percentage egg fertility, but fertility was significantly (P ≤.05) higher in the HPS light treatment during the last 15 wk of the study.It was concluded that HPS light of 172 lx can enhance egg production in breeder Pekin ducklings prior to peak production (37 wk), and HPS light can improve fertility following the peak egg production period. Furthermore, this study indicated that a breeder duckling flock with 15% males was adequate to achieve optimum fertility.