Year: 2018 | Month: December | Volume 8 | Issue 6
Estimation of Phenotypic Trend in Performance Traits of Native Chicken Germplasm of Himachal Pradesh
Abstract:
Native chicken germplasm is playing an important role in development of location specific chicken stocks suitable for rural backyard poultry production. In the present study, on-farm performance evaluation for various growth, sexual maturity and egg production traits was done of native chicken population. First four generations of the native birds produced through selective breeding was evaluated. The performance traits evaluated were growth (Chick weight, 4th week BW, 8th week BW, 12th week BW, 20th week BW and 40th week BW), age at sexual maturity (ASM), hen housed egg production (HHEP), hen day egg production (HDEP) and survivor egg production (SEP) at 40 weeks, 52 weeks and 72 weeks of age and egg weight at 28 weeks, 40 weeks and 52 weeks age. The phenotypic means and variability for different traits was estimated generation wise and the phenotypic time trend over the generations was estimated for various performance traits. The analysis revealed positive phenotypic trends in day old chick weight (0.70 g), 8 weeks BW (34.64 g), 12 weeks BW (63.80 g), 20th week body weight (25.01 g), negative trend in age at first egg (-4.8 days) and age at 25% HHEP (-3.5 days), positive trend in egg weight at 28-week (2.1 g), 40-week (1.5 g) and 52-week (0.4 g). The hen day egg production at 40 weeks, 52 weeks and 72 weeks of age showed positive phenotypic trend of 3.8, 6.1 and 2.3 eggs. Further, hen housed and survivor egg production also showed positive trend estimates at 40, 52 and 72 weeks age. Negative or declining trends were observed in growth traits viz. 4 weeks BW (-16.4 g) and 40 weeks BW (-55.45 g). The results of present analysis indicated the effectiveness of the selection along with improved management for bringing improvement in egg production traits of the population in succeeding generations.
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