Shank Length Research Articles

Characterization of indigenous chicken phenotypes in Liban Jawi District, Ethiopia: A qualitative and quantitative analysis.

Indigenous chickens play a crucial role in the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in rural Ethiopia. This study aimed to phenotypically characterize indigenous chickens in the Liban Jawi district, focusing on measurements of phenotypic characteristics. The multi-stage sampling method selected 192 households with at least two mature indigenous chickens from 2,166 households, resulting in the sampling of 224 chickens (138 females and 86 males) for phenotypic characterization. Qualitative trait analysis revealed that male chickens exhibited a plain head shape (54.7%), single combs (39.5%), red feather plumage (26.7%), yellow shanks (54.7%), red earlobes (51.6%), and white skin (68.6%). Female chickens showed single combs (75.4%), red earlobes (51.4%), yellow shanks (50.1%), and brown mottled feathers (23.9%), with red (23.1%) and black (9.4%) feathers observed. Quantitatively, cocks had an average body weight of 1.46±0.02 kg, while hens weighed 1.21±0.01 kg. Cocks exhibited larger body dimensions, with significant measurements in body length (38.05±0.26 cm) and wingspan (38.56±0.13 cm). For hens, the average body length was 31.55±0.33 cm. Shank length emerged as a moderate predictor of body weight for both sexes (r = 0.45 for hens and r = 0.44 for cocks), indicating it should be combined with other factors for accurate assessments. Cluster and multivariate analysis revealed distinct phenotypic groupings among the indigenous chickens, highlighting significant variations in both qualitative and quantitative traits. This suggests the potential for improvement through selective breeding at the community level, influenced by unique environmental conditions and practices. These findings provide valuable insights into the phenotypic characterization of indigenous chickens, serving as a foundation for future breeding programs and conservation efforts aimed at enhancing productivity and preserving genetic diversity. Further molecular-level characterization is recommended to validate the current phenotypic results.

Phenotypic characterization and principal component analyses of Bangkok chicken in Indonesia

ABSTRACT Bangkok chicken is a significant genetic resource in Indonesia, valued culturally and economically. However, limited reports on its phenotypic diversity risks genetic loss. This study aimed to assess phenotypic characterization of Bangkok chicken through qualitative and quantitative traits. Methods included qualitative classification, morphometric measurements, correlation, and principal component analysis (PCA). A T-test analyzed sex differences in body weight and morphometric traits. The research findings revealed that the male Bangkok chickens had 44.16% black-red (black dominant) feather colour and 73.20% yellow shank. Meanwhile, the females had 78% black feather colour and 34% black shank. The pea comb type was dominant in both sexes. The results indicated that the body weight and morphometric traits of male Bangkok were higher than those of females. In the total population, the PC1 accounted for 56.92% of the total variance. Morphometric features, such as breast girth and shank length were strongly correlated with body weight, highlighting their potential as reliable traits for selection and breeding Bangkok chickens. In conclusion, the study identified key phenotypic characteristics, which were body weight, breast girth, and shank length. These traits are strongly correlated and can serve as reliable criteria for selecting and improving Bangkok chicken breeds. Highlight The variation of qualitative traits of Bangkok chickens, consisting of feather colour, shank colour, and comb type, were widely varied across the population. Sexual dimorphism (male and female) affected all the parameters in quantitative traits, and the PCA identified breast girth and shank length as the key potential criteria for selecting Bangkok chicken.

Morphometric characteristics of Mojosari and Alabio ducks in Indonesia

This study investigated the morphometric characteristics of Mojosari and Alabio ducks, indigenous breeds recognized for their genetic value in Indonesian agriculture. A total of 456 ducks, comprising 254 Mojosari and 202 Alabio ducks, were assessed for body weight (BW), shank length (SL), breast circumference (BrC), and back length (BcL) at 10 weeks of age. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize morphometric traits, and the Mann?Whitney U test was applied to evaluate differences between sexes due to the nonnormal distribution of the data. Additionally, Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationships between body weight and morphometric traits, identifying reliable predictors across sexes and breeds. Significant breed- and sex-specific variations were observed, with male Alabio ducks showing superior body weights, whereas female Mojosari ducks presented distinctive shank proportions, reflecting potential adaptive differences. Correlation analysis highlighted back length and breast circumference as strong predictors of body weight, with a greater association observed in female Alabio ducks. These findings provide a foundational understanding of morphometric diversity in Indonesian ducks, supporting their conservation and potential for targeted breeding programs to increase productivity, resilience, and adaptability.

Riveting damage behavior and mechanical performance investigation of CFRP/CFRP thin-walled single-lap blind riveted joints

Riveting has a wide range of advantages in improving the performance of composite connections, however, it is highly likely to cause damage to the composite structure. Therefore, an experimental study was conducted to assess the damage behaviors of the carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP)/CFRP blind riveted joint. Mechanical performance of joints was also evaluated experimentally. Furthermore, failure modes were exhaustively discussed. The influences of the rivet shank length on both the riveting damage and the mechanical performance were also investigated. The results demonstrated that: the surface bearing damage occurred on the first ply and was mainly caused by the pressure of forming the riveted head along the rivet shank axial. Serious damage occurred in the upper plies near the riveted head due to the radius expansion of the rivet shank. The damage modes were affected by the angles of the fiber laying direction and the rivet shank. The grooved blind riveting formed a localized protruding area around the periphery of the holes and caused less riveting damage. The failure modes of the tensile specimens were all shear failure, and the failure modes of the pull-off specimens were characterized by laminate fracture around the rivet holes, which subsequently led to rivet pull-off failure. It is worth emphasizing that the pull-off damage load and failure load of grooved blind riveted specimens were higher than those of general blind riveted specimens, while the grooved blind riveting reduced the tensile resistance.

Assessment of phenotypic diversity and morphometry of indigenous chickens in Kabwe District, Zambia

This study characterized Zambian indigenous chickens' phenotypes and morphometric traits in Kabwe District, Zambia, to create a base for breeding program development. To achieve this, 206 hens and 228 cocks we sampled in Kabwe district. Each sampled chicken was phenotyped for 4 qualitative traits: ear lobe color, shank color, comb type, and eye color. Individual linear body measurements were recorded from each chicken using a tailor's tape in centimeters, which included body length (BL), chest circumference (CC), corpus length (CL), keel length (KL), shank circumference (SC), shank length (SL), thigh circumference (TC), and thigh length (TL). The findings showed that the predominant phenotypes were single comb type (98.91%), orange eyes (80.44%), white shanks (33.70%), and red-white earlobe color (50%). The average body weight was 1698.24 g, which showed a significant positive correlation (p<0.05) with all linear body measurements. For both sexes, body weight correlated positively with all linear measurements, except in males where body length showed a nonsignificant negative correlation. A stepwise regression analysis indicated that chest circumference, keel length, body length, shank circumference, thigh circumference, and corpus length (CL) are significant predictors of body weight (R² = 76.90%, P < 0.05). Additionally, the CHAID data mining algorithm identified keel length as the primary predictor of body weight, with corpus length and thigh length also contributing, achieving an R² of 61.20%. These findings provide valuable insights for instituting chicken breeding programs aimed at enhancing productivity and selection decisions.

Principal Component Analysis of Morphometric Traits of Tripura Desi Cattle

Background: In 234 cows of Tripura desi cattle from three districts, 18 different biometric traits were measured and analyzed by PCA to explain body conformation. These traits included body length, height at withers, heart girth, paunch girth etc. The native cattle in Tripura are of a smaller breed, according to the average of these several traits. Methods: Six factors that accounted for roughly 75.67% of the variation overall were found using factor analysis with promax rotation. Explaining 26.07% of the total variation, factor 1 characterized the overall body structure. The measurements of tail length, shank length, heart girth, paunch girth, circumference of horn and horn length were significantly positive with high loadings. Result: The outcome indicates that a significant decrease in the number of biometric parameters required to record in order to explain body conformation could lead to the application of principal component analysis (PCA) in breeding programmes. As a result, the study will support conservation efforts and the stabilization of this non-descript breed of cow.

Pengaruh Dosis Pemberian Enzim Bromelin Terhadap Ukuran Linear Tubuh Ayam Ipb-D1 Generasi Pertama

This study aims to determine the effect of the dose of bromelain enzyme on the linear body size of first generation IPB-D1 chickens. The livestock used were 80 first generation IPB-D1 chickens aged 4 weeks. This research method used a Completely Randomized Design consisting of 4 treatments and 5 replications. Each replication consisted of 4 chickens. The treatment given was E0 = Drinking water without enzyme (control), E1=4 ml of bromelain enzyme/liter of water, E2= 8 ml of bromelain enzyme/liter of water and E3=12 ml of bromelain enzyme/liter of water. The research variables included back length, chest circumference, wing span and shank length. The results of the study showed that the use of the bromelain enzyme had no significant effect (P>0.05) on back length, chest circumference, wing span and shank length at 4 weeks of age. 8 and 12 weeks. It was concluded that the use of the bromelain enzyme in drinking water up to a dose of 12 ml had the same effect on the linear body size of first generation IPB-D1 chickens.

Morphometrics of IPB D1, IPB D2 and IPB D3 Chickens Aged 4 to 12 Weeks at Sinar Harapan Farm Sukabumi

Research on the 11 morphometrics of IPB-D chicken in Sukabumi district has not been conducted. This study aimed to evaluate the morphometrics of IPB D1, IPB D2 and IPB D3 chickens in Sukabumi District. The design of this study was a completely randomized design with 3 levels of treatment linesnamely IPB D1, IPB D2 and IPB D3 with 95% confidence interval. Treatments that had a significant effect were followed by the Tukey test. Measured morphometric parameters such as shank length, shank circumference, femur length, tibia length, breast length, breast width, breast depth, breast circumference and back length. IPB D3 chickens show that their genetic condition is not yet stable as meat type. At the age of 4 to 8 weeks, IPB-D3 chickens have a larger size in the variables of shank circumference, femur length, tibia length, breast length and breast circumference. However, at the age of 8 to 12 weeks IPB-D3 chickens have a smaller size in the variables of breast length, breast width, breast depth, breast circumference and back length. Meanwhile, IPB D1 chickens show that they are genetically stable and IPB D2 is able to adapt because of its resistance traits.

ADDITIVE AND NON-ADDITIVE GENE EFFECTS ON LINEAR BODY TRAITS OF LOCAL TURKEYS REARED IN THE HUMID TROPICS OF NIGERIA

Research reports on genetic evaluation of growth traits, general and specific combining ability effects in domestic turkeys are rare; hence the need for this study. Breeding programmes involve crossbreeding of various strains of turkey to improve the already existing breeds and to estimate specific and general combining abilities in the domestic turkey. General Combinig Ability (GCA) and Specific Combining Ability (SCA) were used to determine the influence of additive and non-additive genes effects on linear body traits, using a total of 215 1-day-old poults of three strains of local turkey crossbred in the humid tropics. A full diallel crossing experiment was conducted using three phenotypes of indigenous turkeys with the plumage colour: black, white and lavender (spotted). Randomized complete block design (RCBD) was also used to analyze the data with phenotypic class as a major factor and batch as block. Parameters measured includes: Body weight (BWT), Body length (BDL), Shank length (SL), Keel length (KL), Wing length (WL), Breast width (BW), Drumstick length (DL), Neck Length (NL). Data obtained were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA). The result obtained in the showed that GCA was significant for BL, WL, DS and SL and non-significant for BW, BRW, KL and NL with values ranging from – 0.34 to 0.640, respectively. SCA was also significant for BL, BW, BRW, KL and SL but non-significant for WL, DS and NL ranging from 2.981 to 8.324. It was concluded that the significance (P<0.05) differences observed for most LBMs and BW in different ages (weeks) for GCA and SCA indicates that non-additive effects of genes could be improved genetically through selection and crossbreeding of BxS, BxW and WxS genotypes to bring about genetic improvement for BW and LBMs and by improving the environment. The additive gene action governs BL, WL, DS and SL and not for the other traits which may be governed by genes with non-additive effect.

PHENOTYPIC VARIANT IN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT AMONG MALE AND FEMALE ARBOR ACRES CHICKEN STRAINS

The performance of broiler birds is determined by its genotype and environmental factors which are determinants of variations in the phenotype. A total of fifty (50) day-old Arbor Acres broiler chicken were used for the study. Body weight (g) were measured using a digital sensitive scale while the linear body measurements (cm); wing length (WL), shank length (SL), thigh length (TL), comb length (CL), back length (BL), breast girth (BG) and keel length (KL) were measured with the aid of a measuring tape. The experiment lasted for 28 days. Data collected were subjected to one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to generate the variance components using SAS statistical package. The variance components were subsequently used to generate the genetic parameters. The results showed that male chickens (237.10g) were superior in body weight to female chickens at 2 weeks (231.55g), though some of the linear traits (WL, TL and CL) were better in female chickens. The results of the body weight for female chickens (569.92g) were superior at the 4th week than the male chickens (545.23g). The heritability estimates was highest in BG and KL for female chickens while SL presented the highest value of 0.71 and the lowest value of 0.50 in male and female chickens respectively. Amongst the linear body measurements, SL (0.68cm) and BL (0.68cm) had the highest repeatability value in male chickens while repeatability value was highest in CL (0.66cm) amongst the linear measurements in male chickens. It was concluded that male chickens perform better than female chicken early in life. Arbor Acre chickens could be effectively selected on the basis of KL at 2 weeks, and SL and KL at 4 weeks because their heritability was moderate to fairly high for improved performance and significant genetic gain in subsequent generations.

PREDICTION OF BODY WEIGHT OF NIGERIA INDIGENOUS TURKEY USING MORPHOMETRIC TRAIT MEASUREMENTS AT EIGHTEEN WEEKS OF AGE

Turkey is one of the species in poultry which has numerous attributes that can be used to provide protein in the meals of Nigerians. However, turkey production has not received the needed attention when compared to other poultry (chicken) species, partly due to the paucity of documented information on them. The aim of study was to estimate body weight of eighteen weeks old Nigerian indigenous turkey using three mathematical functions (linear, quadratic and cubic) from morphometric trait measurements. The morphometric traits studied were body length (BL), breast girth (BG), keel length (KL) and shank length (SL). Data were collected on the birds from day old to eighteen weeks of age. Body measurements were regressed against body weight at 18 weeks of age using simple linear and non-linear (quadratic and cubic) regression analyses. The correlation coefficients (r) between body weight and morphometric trait measurements were highly significant (p<0.001), with a range of 0.565 - 0.876. The coefficient of determination R2 varied from 33.10 to 31.90%, 57.00 to 73.20%, 74.80 to 76.70% and 56.70 to 60.60% for body length, breast girth, keel length and shank length respectively. The relationship was better described by quadratic and cubic functions. It was concluded that body weight in Nigerian indigenous turkey could be predicted by farmers from any given value of the four morphometric trait measurements.

Numerical study on comprehensive performances of pipe-embedded building envelope integrated with arc-finned heat charging system

In the context of accelerating toward carbon neutrality, building envelopes are gradually regarded as multifunctional units with structural and energy attributes. To address the capacity mismatch between heat injection and thermal diffusion processes that hinder performance improvement of pipe-embedded energy walls, the arc-finned pipe-embedded energy walls (i.e., Arc-finPEWs) with directional heat-charging capacity are put forward. Subsequently, a validated mathematical model is established to explore the transient thermal behaviors of Arc-finPEWs as well as the impacts of 7 key parameters on its energy-saving potentials. Results showed that the directional heat-charging measures could improve the heat-charging capacity in specified directions, and the enhancement effect was more obvious as pipe spacing increased. Besides, the fin number (FN), shank length (SL), and fin angle (FA) were the top three influencing parameters in auxiliary-heating mode, whereas impacts of FA, FN, and arc angle (AA) ranked the top three in load-reduction mode. Furthermore, a larger FN and SL contributed to reducing total primary energy consumption and creating more robust invisible thermal barriers in auxiliary-heating mode, while left-facing fins or SL settings that are too high or too low were unfavorable in load-reduction mode. Meanwhile, the arc-fin designs with SL=0.6, FA=150° and AA=30° in auxiliary-heating mode and FA=30°, SL≤0.4 and AA≤15° in load-reduction mode are suggested. Compared to conventional energy-saving walls, the proposed arc-finned heat-charging system could reduce physical thermal insulation material usage with high embodied carbon features by over 60 %.

Exercise Volume Provides New Insight into the Effects of Housing Systems on Chicken Body Conformation, Carcass Traits, Meat Quality, and Serum Biochemical Parameters.

This study aims to investigate the dynamic changes in daily step counts under different housing systems and further explore the effects of housing system on the body conformation, carcass traits, meat quality, and serum biochemical parameters of a Chinese indigenous chicken breed. At 60 d of age, 300 Jiuyuan Black male chickens with similar body weights in each housing system were further raised until the age of 150 d. At 90, 120, and 150 d of age, in both cage-reared and free-range systems, the top 20 chickens with the highest step counts measured using pedometers and the bottom 20 chickens with the lowest step counts were designated as the cage high-steps group (CHS), the cage low-steps group (CLS), the free-range high-steps group (FHS), and the free-range low-steps group (FLS), respectively. The results show that, at any age stage, the average daily steps (ADS) and total steps (TS) of the FHS group are significantly higher than the other three groups (p < 0.05). The TS of almost all groups showed an overall downward trend as the age increased. Increased exercise volume results in reduced shank length (90 d), breast width (90 d), and keel length (150 d) (p < 0.05). Only birds at 90 d of age from the FHS and FLS groups exhibited lower live body weight, carcass weight, half-eviscerated weight, eviscerated weight, breast muscle weight, leg muscle weight, and percentage of eviscerated weight than the CLS group (p < 0.05). Birds from the FHS group showed the highest heart weight values but the lowest abdominal fat weight values among these four groups (p < 0.05). Both the breast and leg muscle samples from the FHS group displayed higher dry matter and shear force than those from the CHS and CLS groups (p < 0.05). The FHS group displayed the lowest intramuscular fat among the four groups (p < 0.05). The creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in chickens of all age stages were almost observed to rise with increased physical activity. In conclusion, free-range chickens with more exercise volume exhibited an elevated heart weight and reduced abdominal fat but showed negative effects on some body measurements and carcass traits. These results can provide a theoretical basis for the selection of different housing systems for Chinese indigenous chickens.

Genotypic and phenotypic characterisation of three local chicken ecotypes of Ghana based on principal component analysis and body measurements.

This study aimed to characterise three Ghanaian local chicken ecotypes, namely, Interior Savannah, Forest, and Coastal Savannah, based on morphological data and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes. Morphological data including body weight, shank length, body girth, back length, thigh length, beak length, comb length, and wattle length were collected from 250 local chickens. DNA isolated from blood of 1,440 local chickens was used for SNP genotyping with the Affymetrix chicken 600k SNP chip. Principal component analysis showed that Forest and Coastal Savannah birds were closely related. Generally, all three ecotypes exhibited high genetic diversity, especially birds from the Interior Savannah zone. Morphological characterisation showed that ecotype (p = 0.016) and sex (p = 0.000) had significant effects on body weight. Birds of the Interior Savannah ecotype were the heaviest (p = 0.004), with mean weights of 1.23 kg for females and 1.40 kg for males. Sex also had a strong significant effect on most of the morphological measurements, but the sex * ecotype interaction effect was not significant. Very few of the feather phenotypes previously reported to be associated with heat resistance-frizzle (2%) and naked neck (1.6%)-were found in the studied populations. It is concluded that the three local ecotypes are genetically diverse but with similar morphological features and the information provided would be useful for future selection decisions.

QUANTITATIVE TRAITS DIFFERENTIATION OF THE NIGERIAN FULANI ECOTYPE CHICKENS IN FOUR AGRO-ECOLOGICAL ZONES

Quantitative traits data collected from one hundred and forty (140) Nigerian Fulani Ecotype Chickens (NFEC) from four agro-ecological zones at 44 weeks old were evaluated. The collections were made up of 25 hens and 10 Cocks from each of sudan savannah (Kebbi), guinea savannah (Kwara), derived savannah (Nasarawa) and humid forest (Osun). Twenty morphological measurements (body weight, body length, neck length, head length, shank length, thigh length, comb length, comb height, wattle length, wattle height, toe length, drumstick length, beak length, keel length, chest circumference, shank diameter, comb serration, wing span, wing length and spur length) were taken from birds in each collection. Data were subjected to analysis of variance and forward stepwise discriminant analysis. Effect of ecological zone of collection shows significant (P &lt;0.05) difference in only four (head length, body length, shank length and thigh length) of the twenty measured traits. Forward stepwise discriminant analysis shows that body weight, toe length, thigh length, head length and neck length are the largest contributors to the discrimination between the NFEC from the different agro-ecological zones. A remarkable low variability observed in most of the quantitative traits qualifies NFEC as a potential breed. However, further study using larger sample number and molecular genetics technique may be necessary. This is to confirm if the reported variation is solely due to the environment or whether it is genetic or the interaction between the two factors.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BEHAVIOUR AND MORPHOMETRIC TRAITS IN YOUNG CHICKENS

The correlation between behavioural (anxiety, sociality and cognition in Open Field, T-Maze, Forced Approach and Voluntary Approach tests) traits on the one hand and morphometric traits including body weight, length of body parts (Body length, Body girth, Shank length, Keel length, Wing length) and associated growth rates, Body mass Index, and Body girth: Body length ratio) from age 1 to age 8 weeks on the other, was examined in a cohort of 44 chickens consisting of 22 local (Yoruba Nigerian Local Chicken) and 22 exotic (11 Hubbard Broiler and 11 Isa Brown Layer) chickens. The levels of correlation between 160 directly measured and derived traits (of which 44 were behavioural) was determined by the use of the Pearson's method. A matrix of correlation coefficients of all 12,720 possible unique pairwise comparisons was generated. Of the 5104 Behavioural vs. Morphometric trait correlations, Low (-0.3&lt; r &lt; 0.3), Medium (0.3 &lt;r&lt; 0.7 and -0.3&gt;r&lt;-0.7) and High (0.7&lt;r&lt;1.0 and -0.7 r &lt; -0.7) inter-trait correlations were observed in 83%, 16% and 1% of cases respectively, and the highest Positive and Negative Coefficients observed were 0.75 and +0.75 respectively By contrast, in the 6730 unique Behavioural vs. Behavioural plus Morphometric vs. Morphometric trait correlations, Low, Moderate and High inter-trait correlations were observed in 18%, 26% and 56% of cases respectively, and the highest Positive and Negative Coefficients observed were 1.00 and + 1:00 respectively. Consideration of absolute coefficient values revealed a median coefficient of 0.27 (Low Correlation). All coefficients of correlation equal to or exceeding +0.33/- 0.33 were significant (p &lt; 0.05). The highest positive coefficients of correlations (r 0.7, High Positive Correlation) between behavioural and non-behavioural traits correspond to a link between Latency to cross the first square in an Open Field Test (which embodies anxiety and locomotory components) at age 7 weeks and Body size (BW, BL, SL, WL, BG) as shown in Table 2 and Figure 1. High coefficients of correlation were also observed between Latency to cross the first square in an Open Field Test (which embodies anxiety and locomotory components) at age 7 days and Body size (BW, WL, KL, SL, BMI) as shown in Table 2 and Figure 1. In addition, high positive correlation (r0.7) was observed between Time resting in an OFT at age 48 days on the one hand, and body size (BW, BG, GLR, BMI) as shown in Table 2 and Figure 1. The high negative coefficients of correlation occurred between Time ambulating in an Open Field Test (Behavioural traits) at age 6 weeks on the one hand and body weight, body shape and fatness indices (Morphometric traits) including BW, BG. GLR and BMI (Figure 1 and Table 2). These data point to the potential utility of morphometric traits as heurictic/surrogate markers for behavioural traits in poultry breeding and management. Further, they suggest that determinants of activity in a stressful environment may determine body weight and size of chickens as has been observed in humans and laboratory animals with consequences for the incidence and progression of non-communicable metabolic dysfunction/diseases and their sequelae., and/or alternatively, that determinants of early body weight and size determine activity in under anxiety inducing stress, as has been shown in the relationship between obesity and stress related health conditions in humans. Further studies will partition the genotype and environmental influences on the high correlation between behaviour and morphometric traits reported here, and will define the underlying molecular basis of the former.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF BODY WEIGHT AND SOME BIOMETRIC PARAMETERS OF PROGENIES OF INDIGENOUS CHICKENS AND THEIR NAPRI X CROSSES

indigenous chickens. They include Normal feathered (N), Naked neck (Na) and Frizzle feathered (F) and their crosses with NAPRIX to form crosses of Normal X NAPRIX (NNPX), Naked neck X NAPRIX (NaNPX) and Frizzle X NAPRIX (FNPX) to evaluate their potentials for genetic improvement of body weight. Body weight and biometric traits at 28, 56 and 84 days and their correlation were evaluated. Body weight (B W), body length (BL), shank length (SL) and thigh length (TL) differed significantly (P&lt;0.05) with NNPX having the highest values for the measured traits while body girth (BG) did not significantly differ (P&gt;0.05). The correlation between traits was highly positive and significant (P&lt; 0.01; r= 0.62-0.99) except for moderate relationship in NaNPX between BW and BG (P&lt; 0.05; r= 0.31). This indicated that normal feather chicken can respond more fastly when subjected to genetic improvement among the indigenous chickens.

Effect of Genetic Groups and Gender on Body Weight and Different Morphometric Traits in Poultry Birds

Background: Traits of economically importance are quantitative, complex with continuous variability in chickens whereas body morphometric parameters are variable on the basis of some factors such as age, sex, nutrition, climate and status of the birds which is very important in differentiating native from exotic as well as commercial breeds. Methods: Three genetic groups of chicken i.e., Rhode Island Red (RIR), Kadaknath and Punjab Brown were classified according to gender and genetic groups. The body weight was measured from 0 day to 26th week of age and morphometric trait from 12 to 26th week of age. The fixed effect of gender and genetic groups on different fortnightly body weights (BW) and morphometric traits were estimated. Result: Punjab Brown poultry birds had significantly higher (p≤0.01) body weight and morphometric traits viz. beak length (BKL), keel length (KL), wing length (WL) and body girth (BG) for most of the studied weeks. Male birds consistently had significantly (p≤0.01) higher body weight and important morphometric parameters viz. shank length (SL), shank width (SW), BKL, comb length (CL), KL and WL compared to females across all age groups which interprets the significance of different non-genetic factors on body weight and important morphometric parameters for further selection in different breeds of poultry birds.

MORPHOLOGICAL AND PRODUCTION CHARACTERISTICS OF HELMETED GUINEA FOWL (Numida meleagris) IN NIGERIA: A REVIEW

The study was conducted to review the morphological and production characteristics of helmeted guinea fowl in Nigeria. Reproductive and production traits which include mating and mating ratio, egg production and egg quality, characteristics composition and hatchability of eggs, as well as morphological traits such as body weight (BW), body length (BL), neck length (NL), wing length (WL), shank length (SL), thigh length (TL), keel length (KL) as well as chest circumference (CC) were reviewed. The BW and BL of guinea fowl ranged between 1.42kg and 1.60kg and 22.42cm and 41.75cm, respectively, while the CC varied from 35.37cm to 39.34cm. The WL, NL, SL, TL and KL varied from 19.34cm and 22.97cm, 17.03cm and 19.02cm, 7.73cm and 9.03, 11.87cm and 13.82, 2.80cm and 12cm, respectively. It was also understood that, guinea fowl stock if carefully managed, may lay 100 or more eggs in a year. Conclusively, the review found that guinea fowl has reasonable body weight and performed averagely in terms of egg and meat production compared to other domestic chickens. However, it is recommended that more work should be carried out to improve the genetic performance of the bird.

THE EFFECT OF FEEDING DIFFERENT LEVELS OF TIGER NUT (Cyperus esculentus L) SEED MEAL ON CARCASS AND ORGAN WEIGHTS CHARACTERISTICS OF JAPANESE QUAILS (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

An investigation into the replacement value of tiger nut seed meal as substitute for maize in diets of Japanese quail was studied. Four different diets were formulated such that tiger nut replaced maize at 0% (T), 25% (T2). 50% (T) and 75% (T) respectively in a Completely Randomized Design. The control diet (T) contained no tiger nut. Ninety six day-old Japanese quails were used for the experiment to determine the effect of the test diets on carcass and organ weights characteristics in a 49-days trial. The quail chicks were arranged into the 4 dietary treatments, each containing 3 replicates with 24 birds per dietary treatment and 8 birds per replicate. Result indicated that the carcass cut parts showed that liveweight, drumstick, thigh, shank, wings, head size and anus varied due to the influence of the dietary treatments, whereas, dressed weight, back, breast and neck were not affected by the diets. Drumstick and anal weights were reduced, whereas, thigh and head size increased with an increase in the level of tiger nut. The interaction of energy and protein levels of the diets did not affect dressed weight contrary to some previous findings. T; performed better in shank length (1.81%) and dressed weight (84.92% ). T3 was moderate in most performances. T. was least in shank (1.59%) and wing weights (6.99%). The organ proportions was influenced by the diets in liver/spleen, gizzard and intestinal weights, but showed no influence in kidney, heart and proventriculus weights. The dressed percent was highest in T2 (84.92%). The liver weight was most significant in T2 (3.50 % lwt). Gizzard size was highest in T3 (4.67%) compared to the control (3.27%) and increases with high fiber diet. The gizzard and liver weights variation were attributed to the differences in the influence of dietary energy and protein interaction as well as fiber digestibility. The high value of the liver in T2 favoured the internal organs. Based on the carcass cut parts and organ proportions, the 25 % level of inclusion of tiger nut is recommended for replacing maize.