Determination of Some Quantitative and Qualitative Traits in Libyan Native Fowls

A total number of 330 native Libyan chicken eggs were collected from smallholders over different areas of south Libya to determine and classify some quantitative and qualitative traits in Libyan native fowls. The quantitative traits studied in the current trial were fertility and hatchability percent, egg weight, eggshell characteristics (weight, thickness, area), chicks weight and body measurements at different ages and rectal temperature. The quantitative traits studied were eggshell color, feather color, shank color, comb type, head shape, ear lobe color and ptilopody. The main results of the current study could be summarized as follows: The fertility of local chicken eggs was slightly better (about 73%) and the hatchability trait was close to fertility measure, the corresponding figure was about 69%. Concerning chick weight and its percent, the corresponding values were 26.4g and 60.4%, respectively. The Libyan native eggs have lost more of their weights as a percent from initial weights; the mean value was 19.5%. The average of body weight in Libyan fowls ranged from 26.7 to 250.4g from hatching weight up to the sixth week of age. At latter ages, there was a significant difference between males and females in body weight trait throughout the later ages, where the body weight of males was significantly heavier than females. With respect to the qualitative traits, The brown/black/white (36.4%), black (24.7%) and brown (14.8%) feathers were the main feathers color in Libyan native fowls beside some other groups of color presented with less frequency. The predominant shank color was black (39.9%) followed by yellow (24.5%), blue (18.7%) and white (17.9%) shanks. In conclusion, the Libyan native chickens show heterogeneity in the phenotypic traits considered. Therefore, further investigation is required to make an extensive survey on the Libyan local chickens over different areas of Libya to classify those birds according to their qualitative and quantitative traits in an attempt to make local meat and layer chicken lines and take into account the uniformity of qualitative characters to make local strains are similar in their morphological and productive characteristics .