Abstract
Morphological and genetic characterization of 13 Italian local chicken breeds
Highlights
The poultry sector is characterized by a constant process of specialization of breeding genetic resources, commercial hybrid lines, and breeding systems
In this study we provide an overview of genetic population structure and main phenotype morphometric features of 10 local chicken breeds from Northen Italy (Ermellinata di Rovigo [PER], Millefiori di Lonigo [PML], Padovana Argentata [PPA], Padovana Camosciata [PPC], Padovana Dorata [PPD], Pepoi [PPP], Polverara Bianca [PPB], Polverara Nera [PPN], Robusta Lionata [PRL], Robusta Maculata [PRM]), and 3 breeds from Central Italy (Ancona [ANC], Modenese [MOD], and Romagnola [ROM])
The highest live body weight (LBW) was obtained for PRM (♂ 4,221.7 ± 450.6 g; ♀ 2,831.7 ± 253.2 g) and the lowest for MOD males (♂ 1,695.0 ± 128.1 g) and PPP females (♀ 1,293.3 ± 219.2 g)
Summary
The poultry sector is characterized by a constant process of specialization of breeding genetic resources, commercial hybrid lines, and breeding systems. This process, which began in the second half of the last century, has brought undisputed improvements in production performance, and a progressive erosion of genetic variability and adaptability in livestock animals (Fulton, 2006). The sequencing of chicken genome has shown that commercial lines have lost 90% of the alleles present in the native breeds, which represent, on the contrary, a fundamental resource of biodiversity (Muir, 2008). The native breeds are the result of a long process of domestication and adaptation to the natural environment typical of a particular ecosystem; they represent a socio-economic, cultural and ecological value (FAO, 2018).
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