Nigerian Farmers Research Articles

Formulation of Natural Fortifiers from Readily Available Materials for Nutrient Enrichment of Organic Fertilizers

Studies have shown that organic fertilizer, a product of biodegradable organic matter, is not popular among Nigerian farmers because of its low quality. To alleviate this problem, this study was designed to explore the effect of nutrient-rich materials on quality of fertilizer made from market organic wastes. It adopted an experimental study design, comprising organic fertilizer preparation, fortification with natural fortifiers, farm plot experiments and laboratory analyses. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with factorial arrangement and three replications. The main plots comprised three crops - maize (cereal), soybean (legume) and yam (tuber) while five different fortified organic fertilizers at three rates of applications -2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 ton/ha and control (organic fertilizers without fortification) - formed subplots. Nutrient-rich materials sourced from animal, plant and rock changed the chemical composition of organic fertilizer made from market wastes and yielded better agronomic performances than the synthetic fertilizer. Hence, fortification of organic fertilizer with natural materials which are readily available and environmentally friendly should be promoted among the farmers.

Fertilizer policy of 2010-2015 and changes in farmers fertilizer use and revenue in Taraba State, Nigeria

This study ascertained if the fertilizer policy of the Transformation Agenda; 2010-2015 made any difference in Nigerian farmers’ fertilizer use rate and their revenue. It examined the fertilizer use rate by farmers before and during the policy period and, analyses the effect of the policy on the revenue of farmers before and during the policy period. A paired t -test was employed to examine the fertilizer use rate and revenue of farmers before and during the policy period. The result shows that the average fertilizer use rates during the policy period and before the policy period were 9.3kg/ha and 8.8kg/ha respectively with a difference of 0.5kg/ha of fertilizer used between the periods. It also shows that the average revenue of farmers during the policy period and before the policy period were ₦ 139,745.8 and ₦ 126,169.5, respectively with a difference of ₦ 13,576.3 between the two periods. There was statistical difference between the quantities of fertilizers used by the farmers and their revenues before and during the policy period. Thus, indicating that the policy intervention actually made a difference in both the quantities of fertilizer used and the welfare of the farmers. Due to the fact that Nigeria is still using below recommended fertilizer quantities, the potential of applying more fertilizer is huge. Proper fertilizer usage can boost food production which will in turn affect farmers’ revenue positively. Keywords: Fertilizer use rate, liberalization, agricultural transformation agenda

‘LAND BANDITS’ OR ‘LAND GRABBERS’: FULANI HERDSMEN AND LOCAL FARMERS INCESSANT BLOODY CLASHES IN NIGERIA

Incontáveis mortes desnecessárias ocorreram devido aos incessantes e sangrentos conflitos entre pastores Fulani e fazendeiros locais nigerianos. A situação da segurança no país já é ruim o suficiente sem esta ameaça, que envolve a simples, inocente e trabalhadora população de base. No entanto, as autoridades parecem não ter pistas sobre o ângulo apropriado, a partir do qual abordar a questão. As principais discussões acadêmicas sobre o assunto também não deram atenção ao embate em relação às leis de pastoreio e uso de terra. Esta pesquisa, portanto, investiga as mortes perpetradas por pastores Fulani sob a luz de fatores multidimensionais, que estão, também, sujeitos a um cenário político em constante alteração. A pesquisa é qualitativa e utiliza fontes de dados secundárias e de arquivo. As discussões são baseadas na Teoria da Modernização e na Teoria da Escassez de Recursos, o que permite abordar os conflitos de perspectivas variadas. O estudo identifica as políticas contraditórias para o uso pacífico e apropriado de terras e o problemático esquema de apaziguamento nos diversos níveis do governo nigeriano como um dos gatilhos para os confrontos. Além disso, o fraco pacote de segurança social ofertado à população pode ser conectado às Lutas sangrentas e incessantes Visto que não são realizados planos de desenvolvimento estrutural apropriados, que criem reservas de pastagem para os mercantes nômades, estes decidiram expandir seus negócios à força, uma opção que rapidamente atende às suas necessidades em um país deficitário em segurança. Novamente, a porosidade das fronteiras da nação é, também, um fator crucial considerado nesta pesquisa, já que abundam evidências para provar que a maior parte dos perpetradores destes assassinatos sem sentido tem seus esconderijos em nações fronteiriças, de onde armas são transportadas para dentro do país, a fim de executar suas atividades. Por último, o estudo discute a tomada de terras rurais como a finalidade dos massacres realizados pelos pastores Fulani. Após destruir as vilas, os criminosos confiantemente ocupam a terra, algumas vezes com ajuda militar, enquanto os donos originais fogem em busca de segurança. Este desafio securitário contribui para o atraso econômico, social e político, visto que leva à perda de vidas e propriedades, dificulta e provavelmente impede investimentos locais e estrangeiros, destrói terras férteis e aráveis, além de reduzir o fornecimento de alimentos, em última instância reduzindo a produtividade como um todo. Se o governo não responder à altura, por meio de medidas de segurança drásticas, ocorrências futuras permanecerão prováveis.

Factors impacting farm management decision making software adoption

In this study, we use an unconventional socio-cultural ideology to examine if Western African farmers think agricultural information systems (AISs) improve economic production, at the individual level of analysis. Food production is a necessity for our survival but it has been negatively impacted by unstable financial markets, climate change, political upheavals and health pandemics, especially in Western African-based developing countries. We developed a four factor model based on the information systems expectancy confirmation theory which could determine why Nigerian farmers adopt agricultural information systems. We used a survey to collect data from farmers, we validated the questions using a pilot study, and we developed a structural equation model to quantitatively explain why farmers make the decision to adopt or discontinue the use of AIS electronic software. We found that farmer's satisfaction was positively influenced by high confirmation experience with AIS. To a lesser extent we found that farmer's satisfaction was positively impacted by AIS perceived usefulness (PU). Interestingly, we found no evidence that any factor was related to farmer's behavioural intent for continued use of AIS. The results raise controversial issues concerning AIS effectiveness and government technology funding in Western African countries.

Agricultural stressors: identification, causes and perceived effects among Nigerian crop farmers

ABSTRACTBackground: Many studies have focused on agricultural-related health hazards globally; however, little is known about agricultural stressors among crop farmers in the developing countries. This study identified agricultural stressors, their causes and ascribed effects among crop farmers in Nigeria.Methods: There were 70 crop farmers randomly selected in farming communities across Ekiti State, an agrarian State in South-Western, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire with interview was used for data collection. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.Results: Findings from the study showed that about 98% of the farmers were able to identify stressors that are occupational-related. About 80% of the respondents thought they had been mostly affected by agricultural stressors in a number of ways including inability to sleep regularly, relaxation problems, excessive tiredness, back problems, and intense headache. About 98% of these farmers are yet to develop structured means of coping with these stressors.Conclusion: We concluded that agricultural stressors affect farmers’ well-being. Efforts should be made at initiating a stress management campaign for Nigerian crop farmers. Government and development partners should assist farmers in their challenged areas, and there should be functional integration of mental health focused agricultural health in primary health care.

Farmers’ perceptions of crop pest severity in Nigeria are associated with landscape, agronomic and socio-economic factors

Insect pests are a major cause of crop yield losses around the world and pest management plays a critical role in providing food security and farming income. This study links Nigerian farmers’ perceptions of pest severity to the landscape, agronomic, biophysical, and socio-economic context in which agricultural production takes place. A farm household survey was conducted during 2012–2013, collecting data on household characteristics, cropping systems, pest severity and pest management from 805 households in 12 states of Nigeria. Village characteristics and land use information were collected from an accompanying semi-structured village survey. Reported pest severity was negatively associated with the proportions of forest and unused land at the landscape scale. This finding suggests the existence of pest suppressive effects of a diverse landscape under African smallholder agriculture settings, confirming findings of more industrial and larger scale agroecosystems in the temperate zone. Application of fertilizers (chemical and manure) was negatively related to reported pest severity. Moreover, reported pest severity was lower in mixed-cropping systems than in mono-cropping systems, reinforcing the idea of a pest suppression benefit of diverse cropping systems. In conclusion, our findings suggest that the presence of non-crop areas in the landscape and the diversification of agroecosystems may be a viable strategy for smallholder farmers to manage pests with limited reliance of chemical insecticides in Nigeria, but that actual pest management decisions are influenced by a wide range of context-specific factors. The paper adds new evidence on the relationship between different production situation characteristics and pest severity for Nigeria, based on which policy implications are discussed.

Organochlorine Pesticides Contamination of Some Rivers in Abia State- Nigeria

The use of pesticides by most Nigerian farmers to control pests and increase crop yield has been severally reported by many agricultural scientists in Nigeria. Hence this study is aimed at evaluating the level of pesticide contamination of some selected river waters in Abia State, Nigeria. The contamination of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) from nine selected rivers in Abia State Nigeria was investigated to estimate the current level of pollution in these rivers. The Iyi Achi river in Ndielu-Ugwueke, Iyi Oba river in Okanu Ohafia and Iyi Ivere Atani in Arochukwu were selected from the North Senatorial zone. While Iyi Ocha river in Umukabia-Umuahia, Iyi Okwuta river in Okwuta Ibeku- Umuahia and Iyi Ogba Lelu river in Old Umuahia were selected from the Central Senatorial zone. For the South Senatorial zone, Ojii river in Ihie Ngwa, Azumini blue river in Azumini Ndoki and the Asa river in Ohambele- Ndoki were selected for this study. The total pesticides concentration was in the range of 0.039 – 0.192 mg/L in the rivers water. The common OCPs detected in these river water were α-BHC, β – BHC, Dieldrin and endrin. Iyi-Ocha river had the highest concentration of total OCPs (0.192 mg/L), followed by Azumini river 0.126 mg/L, Ojii river 0.120 mg/L, Iyi Okwuta 0.113 mg/L, Iyi Ogba Lelu 0.104 mg/L. While Iyi Ivere Atani in Arochukwu and Iyi Oba river had 0.067 mg//L and 0.039 mg/L respectively. α - BHC, β – BHC, Dieldrin and endrin were the most common OCPs detected. Various concentration patterns between the selected river waters were observed. Iyi Ocha river, Iyi Okwuta river and Ogba Lelu river were contaminated with α-BHC, β – BHC, and endrin. Ojii river and Azumini river were contaminated with α-BHC and β – BHC only, while Iyi Achi, Iyi Oba, Iyi Ivere Atani in Arochukwu and Iyi Asa river is contaminated with α-BHC, β – BHC, Dieldrin and endrin. The OCPs levels in all the rivers sampled were generally below the WHO standard levels.

Mathematical model for scheduling irrigation for swamp rice in Port Harcourt L.G.A, Nigeria

The thirst for increased food production and management of our natural resources (water) is increasing on daily basis and there is a great need for proper utilization of such important resource. Nigerian farmers today still rely on rainfall for cultivation of food crops, this is simply because they do not have the knowledge of irrigation scheduling and timing and it has affected the rate at which food crops are produced in our country. The formula of a mathematical model that can predict the required amount of irrigation water for swamp rice in Port Harcourt L.G.A. of Nigeria was the main objective of this work. Thus, the formula or the model is given as; d 2 = d 1 + E RF + I + I p – ET c . The maximum and minimum values of water depth (d max and d min ) required in the field were determined to be 320.32mm and160mm respectively. The result showed that, the model was able to augment the water need of the planted crop except in weeks 5 and 6 which have the values of d 2 (final water depth in the field) as 135.69mm and 120.07mm respectively. While the mother model indicated that the planted crops will be under severe water stress because the values of their d 2 were below the allowable range of water depletion except in weeks 1,7,10,16 and 17 with their d 2 values to be; 178.50mm, 181.47mm, 162.11mm, 198.80mm and 187.60mm respectively. Water application is made on the field whenever the water level is at or below d min . The result of the correlation analysis for the two models was obtained to be 0.002796. This showed that the two models have a strong non linear relationship between them. Keywords: Mathematical model, irrigation, Water, swamp rice

Potenciales de las fuentes no convencionales de proteína en la alimentación de animales no rumiantes

Este trabajo revisa las investigaciones sobre el uso de fuentes no convencionales de proteína de origen vegetal para la avicultura en Nigeria y otros paises vecinos. Como el coste de los piensos compuestos continua siendo una carga para los granjeros nigerianos debido al alto coste actual de las fuentes convencionales de proteína tales como harina de pescado, torta de cacahuete y harina de soja, es muy urgente explorar los potenciales de fuentes alternativas no convencinales de proteína, especialmente harinas de hojas de algunas plantas, tales como Moringa oleifera, Leuceana leucocephala, Manihot esculenta, Carica papaya y otros piensos leguminosos los cuales pueden, de alguna forma, sustituir la inclusión de fuentes convencionales de proteína. Esas fuentes alternativas no convencionales tienen un excelente valor nutritivo y propiedades terapéuticas. Sus contenidos de proteína bruta son excelentes. Resulta aparente por varios estudios previos que la inclusión de esas fuentes proteícas no convencionales en las dietas avícolas mejora el rendimiento de los pollos en término de tasa de crecimiento y producción de huevos. Sin embargo, sus niveles de inclusión recomendados deben de ser estrictamente ajustados para evitar cualquier efecto deletéreo que pueda tener sobre los pollos. Por ejemplo, la inclusión de la harina de hojas de Moringa oleifera (MOLM) hasta el 10% en dietas de gallinas ponedoras se ha comprobado que es segura. Por lo tanto, será una novedad su inclusión en alimentos avícolas sin producir efectos nocivos para el rendimiento de las aves así como para los consumidores de los productos y, finalmente, dando lugar a mejores beneficios de los granjeros.

A contextual assessment of the FADAMA III programme in Iwo, Osun State, Nigeria

FADAMA is a World Bank development initiative aimed at improving productivity and income of Nigerian farmers through relative science and technological inclusion as well as community and group participation. Following the success of Fadama I and II projects, the government of Nigeria adopted the Fadama III initiative (with comprehensive coverage across all geo-political zones in the country) in 2008 with a project cost of US$425 million. This research compared official and qualitative research data. Official data were from published World Bank and Osun State Fadama documents and statistics while qualitative research data were collected through key informant interviews, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, primarily in Iwo, Nigeria. The research data confirmed official statistics indicating appreciable success of the Fadama III programme despite some challenges.

Determinants of participation in fertilizer subsidy programme among rice farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria

Nigerian farmers, including rice farmers, still record very low levels of fertilizer use thereby limiting productivity. Subsidies have been known to encourage fertilizer use among farmers. This paper examined the factors influencing rice farmer participation in the government’s fertilizer subsidy programme. Data was collected through the aid of a well-structured questionnaire from 263 rice farmers. Descriptive and Logistic regression analyses were used to analyze the data. Statistical mean differences were found in age, household size, years of farming experience, farm size, output and total annual income between participants and non-participants. Also, participation was significantly and positively influenced by marital status, household headship, membership of farmer association/groups, motorcycle ownership, mobile phone ownership, access to credit and total farm size. The paper concludes that efforts should be geared towards encouraging membership of farmer groups, availability and timely distribution of subsidized fertilizer and the establishment of more redemption centres. Key words: Fertilizer, growth enhancement scheme (GES), participation, rice, subsidy.

HELPING PEASANT FARMERS IN NIGERIA THROUGH AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVES: LESSONS FROM JAPAN AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVE MODEL

Japan agricultural cooperative known as JA in Japan is the citadel of small farmers’ livelihoods. For almost 60 years, JA was the driving force behind small farmer-supportive policy in Japan. The reverse is the case in Nigeria where agricultural cooperatives are not tailored towards organized support; therefore Nigerian farmers face the brunt of the market, policy and economy. While there are emerging challenges for JA, its relevance remains undaunted in marketing, farm guidance, credit, insurance, and subsidy among others. The paper examines the need for adapting the JA agricultural cooperative model in Nigeria and the needed institutional contexts. Alleviating rural poverty in Nigeria requires building farmers capacity through cohesive farmers’ organizations that will act as channels for introducing agricultural technologies for production and processing, gaining access to quality inputs, credit and technology, reduce farm gate losses and enhance harmers access to market and generally improving their capacity for negotiating better deals in the political system and gaining more control over their socioeconomic position in the Nigerian social system. The JA model of agricultural cooperatives is a relevant case study to building an organization that would meet farmers’ needs and help in agricultural development.

Extension Service Delivery Of Agricultural Development Programmes In Southwest Nigeria During The Post World Bank Era (1996-2013)

The study was conducted to assess the extension service delivery within the Agricultural Development Programme s of Southwest Nigeria after the cessation of the World Bank funding between 1996 and 2013. Primary data were collected from 201 extension agents across 50% of the states in the area of study using structured questionaire. Descriptive statistical tools such as frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation were used to analyse the data while t-test was used to test the hypothesis. Hypothesis tested revealed that significant difference existed in the level of extension service delivery in PWBE ( =25.3; Std. Dev=3.06) and WBE ( =55.2; Std. Dev= 7.0) with a t-value of (21) -2.241; P≤0.055. It was concluded that withdrawal of World Bank funding has grossly and negatively affected extension service delivery by the ADPs in Southwest, Nigeria. It is recommended that government at all levels should intensify effort in increasing the budgetary allocation to their extension organisations with a view to boosting food production among Nigerian farmers. Extension programme planners should explore the cooperative group farming approach to generate community level capitalization and also access funds for agricultural development from financial institutions and NGOs. Key W ords: Extension service, extension delivery, World Bank, Agricultural Development Programme

Climate Change Impacts, Awareness and Perception of Africa Rural Farming Communities

The Nigerian agricultural sector is threatened by changing weather patterns that has been shown to have been influenced by climate change. This work investigates how environmental forcing influenced crop productivity over a 30-year period in Enugu State, Nigeria. Environmental components such as, precipitation, humidity and extreme temperatures were directly compared with annual crop yield variations of the key staple food crops. Regression models constructed around the Environmental forcing data showed increasing temporal trends in all assess areas, with R2 values that ranged between 1% and 23%. While, similar models related to crop yield also identified increasing trend in most crops, an important exception being Yam and Melon with R2 values ranging between 4% and 70%. Fertilizer use dramatically increased during the same period, but no correlation could be found with overall crop yield. Pearson correlation matrices were mostly positive between environmental forcing with crop yield but highlighted that Yam production was negatively influenced by increasing precipitation and humidity will precipitation was positively correlated with melon yield. A study conducted using questionnaires assessed the farming communities knowledge, awareness and perception of climate change (n=227). Result show that 61% of respondent are experiencing climatic impacts, while 63% are concerned of potential effects. Further, 55% believe that it is already too late to do anything to mitigate against likely consequences. In terms of knowledge and information sources, most farmers questioned (64%) sources their information from the media. This poses challenges for more robust scientific methods and dissemination of that data, something that needs to be considered by local, regional and international government and policy makers. Questionnaire evaluations showed that the majority of Nigerian farmers were fully aware of climate change and its impacts, with most complaining that due to higher costs there was little or nothing they could do to address the issues. Furthermore, 64% of Nigerian farmers trusted information received from mass media, while the majority attributed climate change to anthropogenic factors (41%). Results showed that most farmers were more concerned about increasing rainfall and drought than other environmental issues.

A Survey on the Perceptions of Co-Operators on Gender Disparity and Financial Viability of Agricultural Cooperative Societies in Rivers State, Nigeria

Gender disparity has been a highly debated topic in many discusses and opinion circles for a very long time, yet, this contentious topic continues to re-vibrate every now and then in many debates. How gender disparity has affected agricultural cooperative activities in Rivers State has not yet been captured in any literature. More so, the viability of these cooperatives has never been a front burner in the government’s agricultural policies over time. This research work was designed and aims to deliberately draw the attention of stake holders to the contentious topic of gender disparity and financial viability of the agricultural cooperatives that may have retarded its growth and development in the state. A multistage approach was adopted in data collection and analysis. 30 agricultural cooperative societies were randomly sampled from the registered council of Nigerian farmers and some unregistered cooperative societies of agric bias using structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics such as averages and percentages were employed in analysis. The result showed evidences of gender disparity and financial insolvency. The injection of credit and elimination of gender disparity were suggested as the way forward.

Gender gap in agricultural productivity in Nigeria: A commodity level analysis

This study assesses gender gap in agricultural productivity across selected major crops grown by Nigerian farmers including cassava, yam, maize, guinea corn, bean and millet. The data for the study is sourced from the Living Standards Measurement Study-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture for the year 2012/2013. The pairwise mean comparisons was applied to determine the extent of gender gap in agricultural productivity, inputs access and other variables; while non-parametric quantile regression technique was employed to assess the relationship between input use and gender gaps in farm outputs. The key finding is that gender gaps in farm output is low with quantity harvested and harvest sales of male managed plots marginally higher than female managed plots by 0.22% and 6.24%, respectively. The gender productivity gaps vary across selected crops and it is more pronounced in cassava, yam and maize production, while it is mild in other crops. The gender farm productivity gaps are traceable to longer farming experience in favour of men and labour market imperfection which is biased against women. Hence, labour market imperfections against women need to be addressed. This requires a formalized farming system which is presently lacking in Nigeria.

Willingness of Nigerian Quail Farmers to Accept Japanese Quail for Large Scale Production in Ogun state, Nigeria

The study investigated willingness of Nigerian quail farmers to accept Japanese quail for large scale productions. Snowball sampling technique was used to select Ninety quail farmers. Only 43.3% of them were willing to accept Japanese quail for large scale production. Most (66.7%) were not aware of its health values while 3.3% had excellent knowledge in quail’s management practices. Significant relationship (r = 0.466, p < 0.05) exists between farmers’ awareness and willingness to accept Japanese quail. It is recommended that extension agencies in Nigeria should provide package training to Nigerian farmers on Japanese quails’ value and management practices so as to improve their knowledge in sustainable quail production.

Seasonal labour market rigidities: Impact on farm employment and wages in Nigeria

This study investigates the sensitivity of wages and employment in the agricultural sector to seasonal demand and productivity conditions facing Nigerian farmers. It develops a data consistent analytical model that incorporates seasonality in farm employment and wages. This was tested empirically using the Living Standards Measurement Study- Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) for Nigeria for the year 2012/2013. The study finds that, during harvest, farmers are significantly less likely to employ male labourers and pay them lesser wages. Contrarily, female labourers are more likely to be employed and paid higher wages in harvest. The decline in male employment and increase in female employment during harvest is stronger for medium (-0.15%) and large scale farmers (0.22%), respectively. The decline in male wages and increase in female wages during harvest is stronger for large (-0.25%) and low scale farmers (0.22%), respectively. This study recommends policy options to minimize undesired employment effect of seasonality.

Sorption and Infiltration Potential of a Cationic Herbicide (Paraquat) in Three Cocoa Growing Soils in Nigeria

Despite the ban of paraquat, its use among Nigerian farmers for weed control is still popular. Larger proportion of applied herbicide ends up in the soil matrix. Off-site transfer of the residual paraquat as contaminant to other environmental compartment depends on sorption process. In order to study the influence of soil characteristics on retention and infiltration of paraquat in cocoa soils, adsorption of paraquat in selected cocoa soils was carried out. In the course of the experiment, Owena, Ibadan and Ikom soils were equilibrated with paraquat solutions of different concentrations ranging from 100 to 800 mg paraquat kg -1 soil. Result showed that, Freundlich model gave better description of paraquat adsorption in the investigated soils than Langmuir model. The pseudo second order kinetic equation gave better description of the adsorption mechanism than pseudo first order. Statistical analysis showed that, aluminium oxide and clay mineral contents were the main soil physicochemical parameters that influenced paraquat sorption in the soils. The low values of groundwater ubiquity score obtained from the adsorption data showed that, the investigated soils were non leacher of paraquat. Hence, its guided and appropriate use may not cause underground water contamination. Original Research Article Aikpokpodion et al.; BJAST, 6(1): 62-76, 2015; Article no.BJAST.2015.067 63

Predetermination of Quail Chick Sex Using Egg Indices in North Central Nigeria

Japanese quails are still in the domestication process in Nigeria and it has been observed that while in the cage they do not sit on their eggs in order to hatch them. Separation of the males and females such that the recommended ratio is kept in coveys is necessary for profit maximization. Presently, sexing in quails is only possible at post hatching stage even with the most popular Japanese vent examination technique. Besides, these techniques may be inaccurate, require expertise, facilities and may not be affordable by many Nigerian farmers. In this study therefore, egg colour, weight and shape were evaluated to predetermine quail chick sex. A total of 540 quail fertile eggs were distributed among the egg colour, weight and shape treatment groups. The data collected on male to female ratio indicated that the only 3 hatched chicks in 8g eggs treatment group were all female chicks. Eggs that weighed 9g hatched 4:5 male to female ratio, 10g eggs (2:3), 11g eggs (1:2), Round eggs (1:2), Oval eggs (15:23) and none of the Spherical eggs hatched. Others were Sienna egg colour that hatched 4:9 male to female ratio, Rich Brown eggs (3:7) and Chocolate (7:13). It was observed that all the treatment groups hatched both sexes though in a non uniform pattern. Thus, it may probably not be achievable to predetermine quail chick sex at pre-hatching stage using egg indices.