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Phenotypic characterisation of native chicken lines in South Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2011

E. van Marle-Köster  and
N.H. Casey
E. van Marle-Köster
Affiliation:
Animal and Wildlife Sciences, Faculty of Natural & Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
N.H. Casey
Affiliation:
Animal and Wildlife Sciences, Faculty of Natural & Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
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Summary

Native chicken lines in South Africa are associated primarily with rural households. A programme was established only as recently as 1994 to conserve the different lines found in South Africa. As no scientific data was available on the production traits of these lines, a research trial was conducted to describe them phenotypically in terms of their growth, carcass traits and egg production. Four different native lines, the Koekoek, Naked Neck, Lebowa-Venda and Ovambo chicken were included in the study. Significant differences were observed among the lines, which means that the lines could be described as different native lines in terms of their phenotypic traits. The Ovambo chicken had the best growth performance, while the Koekoek showed the highest performance for egg production. Although production is poor in comparison with commercial lines, the contribution of these birds to household food security and application in low-input systems should be recognized and further investigated.

Résumé

Les races de poules originaires d'Afrique du Sud sont surtout associées à l'habitat rural. Ce n'est qu'en 1994 qu'on a établi un programme de conservation des différentes races d'Afrique du Sud. Comme il n'existait aucunes données scientifiques sur les caractéristiques de production de ces races, on a entrepris des projets de recherches pour les décrire de manière phénotypique en fonction de leur croissance, des caractéristiques de leur squelette et de leur production d'oeufs. On a inclus dans l'étude 4 différentes races indigènes: la poule koekkoek, la poule à cou nu, la poule du Lebowa-Venda et la poule Ovambo. On a observé des différences importantes parmi les races, ce qui signifie qu'on peut les considérer comme des races indigènes différentes en fonction de leurs caractéristiques phénotypiques. La poule Ovambo montrait la meilleure performance de croissance des races, alors que la poule koekoek avait la meilleure performance dans la production d'oeufs. Bien que leur production soit faible en comparaison des races commerciales, la contribution de ces volatiles à la sécurité alimentaire des foyers ruraux et leur application dans des systèmes de basse production devraient être reconnues et demande des études plus approfondies.

Keywords

Native chickensPhenotypeGrowth and carcass traitsEgg productionFood security
Type
Research Articles
Information
Animal Genetic Resources/Resources génétiques animales/Recursos genéticos animales , Volume 29 , April 2001 , pp. 71 - 78
Copyright
Copyright © Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2001

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