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Village chickens have been kept for millennia under patronage of smallholder farmers. Our study was intended at dissecting the signature of artificial selection and ecological variation on morphological structures of Ethiopian village chickens. This report was based on visual traits of 798 chickens and a concise one-to-one interview of 399 farmers...
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... 3,7 Unlike their wild cousins, i.e., the morphologically cryptic junglefowl, 9 IVCs display tremendously magnificent plumage colors and morphological structures such as combs, wattles, legs, and beaks, especially the cocks. 10 These vivid morphological structures, however, could expose IVCs to predator sightings and attacks. Nevertheless, these traits of the show are highly sought after in the ritual practice of the traditional community and are eyecatching to sightings. ...
... Nevertheless, these traits of the show are highly sought after in the ritual practice of the traditional community and are eyecatching to sightings. 3,10 Conspicuous morphological structures are important ingredients in the process of sexual selection. 11 IVCs might not be as active as junglefowl in exploring their environment and evading predators. ...
... 3,7 Unlike their wild cousins, i.e., the morphologically cryptic junglefowl, 9 IVCs display tremendously magnificent plumage colors and morphological structures such as combs, wattles, legs, and beaks, especially the cocks. 10 These vivid morphological structures, however, could expose IVCs to predator sightings and attacks. ...
Indigenous Village Chickens (IVCs) obtain most of their feed from a scavenging feed resource base. Free roaming makes IVCs express their instincts at will, which could enhance their welfare. Free-ranging has also endowed IVCs with excellent explorative behavior. However, predators might have also co-evolved, which necessitates special interference from smallholder farmers to reduce the adverse impact of predators. This study identified the main predators of IVCs and the evading strategies adopted by smallholder farmers. This cross-sectional study involved a general interview with 119 smallholder farmers. The prevalence of enset, Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman, around the farmer's backyard can impose a significant threat because it shelters terrestrial predators. Smallholder farmers evade predators through patrolling, guarding dogs, fencing, confinement, and, in rare cases, killing. An unplanned conversation made with an informant revealed that men with some clerical ability but no priesthood title incantate on whole grains of black wheat. When the chicken is fed this grain, reportedly, the aerial predator becomes weak and cannot catch the chicken. The agroecological zone has a statistically significant impact on the proportions of predators encountered and the types of evading strategies adopted by smallholder farmers. This association entails the need for developing agroecology-based predator-evading methods. Predators' evading methods, however, need to be refined further to reduce the recurrent losses of chickens. The threats associated with predators' challenges must be thoroughly investigated to advance their evading strategies. Another problem that leads to the significant loss of family poultry is theft. In addition to the strategies used to avoid predators, which may also apply to controlling theft, the legal system must be well-organized to punish such misdeeds.
... Moreover, in Ethiopia, several studies have been conducted on breeding practices and trait preferences for indigenous chickens, in which farmers give much priority to observable morphologies (Dana et al. 2010;Chebo and Nigussie 2016;Terfa et al. 2019;Kassa et al. 2020;Markos et al. 2020;Fekede and Tadesse 2021). Morphological and genetic variations and unique adaptation features of the Ethiopian indigenous chicken populations have been studied by several scholars (Dana et al. 2010;Melesse and Negesse 2011;Taye et al. 2013;Moreda et al. 2014;Negassa et al. 2014;Assefa and Melesse 2018;Kebede 2018;Tadele et al. 2018;and others). However, these studies did not exhaustibly explore all existing chicken genetic resources in Ethiopia in general and in the study areas in particular. ...
... A xanthophyll-rich diet and free-scavenging on natural vegetation have resulted in high frequencies of yellow shank colors observed in this study. Furthermore, similar to this study, several studies have reported yellow and white shank as predominantly followed by other shank color phenotypes under free-scavenging indigenous chickens in Ethiopia (Melesse and Negesse 2011;Taye et al. 2013;Moreda 2015;Assefa and Melesse 2018). Correspondingly, yellow and white dominant shank color types were reported for indigenous chickens in Africa, as reported by Eganhi et al. (2010) and Rotimi et al. (2013) for indigenous chickens of Northcentral Nigeria; Gwaza et al. (2018) reported for Tiv and Fulani indigenous chickens of Nigeria. ...
... Shank feathers were observed regardless of shank color or any phenotype of chicken. In agreement with this, Taye et al. (2013) reported that 97.9% of Horro and 97.8% of Jarso chicken ecotypes have no feathers on their shanks. Likewise, Moreda (2015) reported that about 98.48% of chickens have no shank feathers in the Southwestern Showa and Gurage zones. ...
The visual morphologies in animals are associated positively or negatively with production, adaptation, and behavioral characteristics. For rural farmers with limited records, these features are considered reliable phenotypic markers. Thus, this study was intended to explore the unique morphological features of indigenous chickens as a farmer's selection guide. A total of 1,060 adult chickens from four rural districts were investigated for nine morphological traits. The single-comb type, supposed to be of good fertility, was the most prevalent. Yellow and white shanks were predominant, followed by gray, greenish-yellow, green, and black pigmentations. Crested and silky chickens were more frequent in highland areas, whereas naked-neck chickens were observed in lowlands. Chickens of the lowlands have brighter, more uniform plumage colors and yellow shank, beak, and earlobe colors. On the other hand, the highland and mid-altitude chickens are characterized by dark, colorful combinations of various feather colors: laced plumage, white shank, rose, and deformed rose combs. Moreover, multiple correspondence analyses revealed that morphological features have special associations with districts. Thus, the observed morphological heterogeneity of the indigenous chickens can be used as a good indicator of selective breeding. Therefore, the associations of these characteristics with productivity qualities could be confirmed by quantitative and molecular tools.
... The chickens were raised in a traditional extensive management system, with access to scavenging for their nutritional requirements and basic housing. To minimize interference with urban allied management system remote areas were included (Desta et al., 2013). ...
... In this way to confirm the correlation matrix Bartletts test of sphericity was performed. Furthermore, favorability of sample for principle component analysis was performed through the Kaiser Meyer Olkin test that revealed 0.60 or above in accordance with Desta et al. (2013). ...
This study was carried out in Tando Allahyar district of Sindh, Pakistan to observe the phenotypic characterization of indigenous backyard poultry birds in Tando Allahyar. For this purpose, total 470 birds with 240 male and 230 females were brought under the study. Their phenotypic characteristics were collected thorough observing by the researchers from different UCs of district Tando Allahyar. The data regarding quantitative traits were observed using the measuring tap mentioned in the (FAO) manual. The findings of our study 86.69% out of the 470 birds recorded with normal feather pattern. The common color of shank was found 27.71% white with 89.11% pea comb. The result for body weight revealed that significantly higher body weight was recorded in male birds as compared with female 2425±27 and 1482±11, respectively. The result for overall average body weight was revealed in our study 20.37±25.76 gram. In our study strong positive and significant correlation was observed among the average body weight and linear body measurement of poultry birds. We have used two principal components in our study with (PCI-55.21% and 12.13% that revealed total variability the together 67.11%. In this study 1 st component was recorded 57.32% of variance showed highly significant loading to overall body measurements excluding shank circumferences result. It is concluded that PCI is a useful selection standard for improving the body weight of indigenous backyard poultry birds. In this study many variations observed showed that huge potential of birds have for improvement by selection and better breeding strategies.
... For example, the body weight of males was about 1.4 kg and that of females was about 1.1 kg for village chickens studied in Algeria (Dahloum et al. 2016). The body weight of males was 1.630 kg and females 1.370 kg for village chickens in a study from North Gondar region in Ethiopia (Desta et al. 2013). The body weight of males was 1.50 kg and females 1.3 kg for village chickens in the northern regions of Saudi Arabia (Alsobayel and Al-Mulhem 2001). ...
... In general, the current study showed great diversity in leg color. In similar studies, the presence of white and yellow shank was reported in the humid forests of the Republic of Cameroon (Fotsa et al. 2010), in the Republic of Ethiopia of Garsu and Horovi provinces (Desta at al. 2013), and in the Republic of Nigeria (Egahi et al. 2010), and in the Arab Republic of Libya (El-Safty 2012). The black leg was more common in the eastern region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Al-Atiyat 2017). ...
The purpose of the study is to determine how geographical proximity, climate, and
topography influence the morphology of village chickens in Jordan’s Karak
Governorate. Surveys were conducted in six regions of Karak as well as Tafilah,
Madaba, Aqaba, and Al-Mafraq governarates. These governarates were included
because they are geographically close to Karak Governorate and can be compared in
terms of topography and climate. The morphology and biometric data of each male
and female bird, including the exterior shape of the bird, body weight, colors, and
measurements of body parts, were recorded during a field survey in the targeted
regions. Each breeder’s information was gathered, and each chicken was photo�graphed separately. Afterward, various statistical analyses were utilized to distin�guish between morphological traits, perform clustering, and conduct differential
analyses. The Mahalanobis distances (measure of the distance between a point P
and a distribution D) were also calculated and estimated. The findings demonstrated
that there are disparities in the phenotypic features of chickens between the sexes and
between geographical areas. Village chickens are still raised in a traditional manner;
as a result, there have been no genetic improvement techniques used or gene flow fromgeographically remote regions. Also as a result, chickens in Karak Governorate still
resemble one another and their ancient ancestors in terms of morphological traits. In
all regions and in both genders, the dominating traits were the pink color and single
comb, the beige beak, the orange eye color, and the red earlobe with white speck. The
difference in regions and height led to a significant difference in the appearance of
traits in males and females
... IVCs are important model animals for studying the combined effects of strong natural selection and weak anthropogenic effects as well as their individual effects. The high genetic diversity of IVCs (Lyimo et al. 2014;Desta 2015) is characterized by a wide variety of phenogenetic characteristics (genetic variants and underlying traits) (Desta et al. 2013). As a result of this high diversity, which is vital for evolutionary processes to function appropriately, both natural and arti cial selection have behaved in a relaxed mode. ...
In developing nations, indigenous village chickens, or IVCs, signi cantly contribute to rural livelihoods. IVCs are well-suited for small-scale farmers' multiple breeding objectives and low-input, low-output production systems. Although natural selection has a disproportionate impact on the genetic structure of IVCs, small-scale farmers have developed locally tailored breeding practices to get the most out of their ocks. Small-scale farmers' insights on traits and breed preferences and family ock breeding management are presented in this cross-sectional study. Small-scale farmers prefer IVCs that are optimally good in several traits. In contrast to policymakers, who frequently underestimate the signi cance of IVCs in rural life, small-scale farmers have a balanced view and acknowledge the coexistence of local and commercial chickens. Farmers are unable to achieve their breeding goals by keeping IVCs or production breeds because of the complexity of their breeding goals; instead, this aspiration needs the rearing of both types of chickens. Only 15.7 percent of farmers recruited homegrown cocks to breed their chickens, whereas 84.3 percent outsourced breeding cocks (47.9 percent from the local market and 36.4 percent from neighbors) (χ-squared = 15.976 df = 2, p = 0.0003395). This practice is important to reduce the negative impacts of inbreeding. About 49.2 percent of small-scale farmers believed that consanguineous mating-induced inbreeding had only minor effects. High ock turnover and uncontrolled breeding signi cantly reduce the rate of inbreeding. Despite the low production of eggs and meat, small-scale farmers prefer local (rank = 1.47) chickens to commercial (rank = 1.61). Farmers' preferences are in uenced by the wide range of products and services offered by IVCs. For cocks, fertility, and growth traits were highly sought after, whereas for hens, maternal traits and laying performance were prioritized. Compared to the highlands, the lowlands had a longer egg storage period (t = 2.677, df = 117, p = 0.009, 95 percent CI:-3.7607,-0.5622). The low demand for eggs in the sparsely populated lowland region may be linked to this extended storage, which was practiced regardless of the higher temperature in the lowland region. This study acknowledges the wisdom of small-scale farmers and advocates the incorporation of their insights into a sustainable genetic improvement program. Implications Indigenous village chickens signi cantly contribute to the rural livelihood of the less developed world. Studying the breeding practice of small-scale farmers is important to improve the productivity of the scavenging chicken production system. The trait and breed preference of small-scale farmers and their nonconventional breeding practice is primarily driven by the adaptive characteristics of indigenous village chickens and the ecosystem of the small-scale farmers' socio-cultural needs. A sustainable breeding plan that addresses the preference of small-scale farmers and matches the production environment needs to consider the heterogeneity of small-scale farmers' breeding practices and their practical application in small-scale farmers' settings.
... Fisher's test showed no significant association between plumage patterns (p=0. 19) or plumage colors (p=0.31) and the ecological regions. ...
... More comb types than those found in this study (single and pea) were recorded in Ethiopia: single, pea, buttercup, duplex, rose, strawberry, and walnut types [19] . Similarly, in Cameroon, six types of comb were recorded: single, rose, spiky rose, walnut, pea and double [7] . ...
... Indeed, some studies report that comb color is an indicator of health status and fertility of chickens [22,23] . The uniqueness colors of wattle, comb and ear-lobe which is represented by shades of red (Table 6) is consistent with the results reported in Ethiopia [19] and in fancy chickens [24] . In Kenya, similar results were also recorded in native chickens for red color of the comb and wattles [25] . ...
This study was conducted to identify the different ecotypes existing in Malagasy village chickens. Measurements of morpho-biometric parameters of chickens from two ecological different regions (Analamanga and Atsimo Andrefana) and statistical analyses were performed according to FAO guidelines. Among the 117 chickens analyzed, the results showed that those from the Atsimo Andrefana region had significantly higher biometric values than those from the Analamanga region regarding live weight (1629.23g vs. 1448.46g; p = 0.02), wingspan (46.09cm vs. 44.08cm; p = 0.009) and tarsal length (8.51cm vs. 7.13cm; p < 0.000). However, there was no significant difference between the two groups of chickens for the body length (p = 0.829) and chest circumference (p = 0.922). Morphological characters are very diverse and did not show any significant difference between the Analamanga and Atsimo Andrefana regions. Thus, the groups of chickens correspond to two ecotypes identified in the Malagasy village chickens.
... All the sampled chickens were kept in traditional extensive system where birds would scavenge for their feed and had very basic housing. Areas in close proximity to the central business district were avoided to reduce interference with urban allied systems of management (Desta et al., 2013). ...
The study was conducted in Kalomo district of Zambia to phenotypically characterize indigenous chickens in the area in order to initiate the base for strategic improvement of the indigenous chickens. In this study, 476 chickens (245 males and 231 females) were used. The phenotypes were recorded through observation by the researcher while quantitative traits were measured using the tailor's measuring tape as guided by the FAO guide. Out of 476 birds, 85.29% had normal feathers. The most common shank color was gray-blue (29.41%) with the single comb type being the most dominant (91.18%). The red-white earlobe color was predominant (44.12%). Brown eyed chickens were the most common (52.93%). Body weight was taken using a digital scale. There was a significant difference (P˂0.05) in body weight between males and females, males being heavier than the females (2331±587grams and 1586±245grams, respectively). The overall average body weight was 1969±589grams. There was significant (P˂0.05) positive correlation between all linear body measurements with body weight. Two principal components PC1 (54.50%) and PC2 (11.28%) were extracted which both cumulatively accounted for 65.78% of the total variability. The first principal component accounted for 54.50% of variance and had high significant loadings on all body measurements except for shank circumference. We, therefore, theorize that PC1 can be exploited as selection standards for body weight improvement in Zambian indigenous chickens. The many variations found in this study indicated the huge potential that indigenous chickens have for improvements through selection and good breeding strategies.
... Smallholder farmers generally rear native domestic chickens using a conventional scavenging strategy in many underdeveloped nations [45,46]. Native chickens are wellliked in these regions due to their resistance to common poultry diseases and variations in feed quality and availability, which results in minimal or no input expenditures [47]. ...
... Despite their significance and capacity to adapt to challenging production environments, indigenous breeds of chicken, which make up the majority of rural poultry, are less productive than temperate breeds. African smallscale farmers frequently raise native domestic chickens using the classic scavenging system [45,46]. Due to their resistance to common poultry diseases and fluctuations in feed quality and quantity, which require little to no input, they are a dominant site in rural areas with limited resources [47]. ...
One of the current issues facing humanity is ensuring sustained global food security in the face of devastating effects of climate change; this challenge is particularly pressing on the African continent. Here, I present an opinion piece identifying local animal genetic resources as "African leverage point" that provide the highest chances to cushion rural fork to climate change, enhance environmental sustainability and food security in Africa. When it comes to boosting food
production, coping with climate change, or bolstering the delivery of a wide range of ecosystem services, I believe that African animal genetic resources are essential alternatives for the sustainable growth of the livestock industry and its contribution to food security. Africa needs to address the support and development of indigenous animal genetic resources in order to meet the basic food
needs of more than 1 billion people, address numerous environmental issues with continental implications, and focus on more effective and resilient food systems with the greatest impact on food security. The indigenous animal resources diversity and support actions to this unique group could provide a boost in protein that is lacking to constitute healthy diets in Africa. The priorities of nonprofit organizations, foundations, governments, citizens' groups, and companies can be influenced by this leverage point in the African food system. Due to continuous food insecurity, which appears to be becoming worse with climate change and makes it even harder to accomplish the SDGs on the continent, Africa has paid a hefty price for being misled about the worth of its own animal genetic resources. To the contrary, it is highly improbable that a strategy to improve food security and rural livelihoods that undermines the utilization of indigenous animal genetic resources will be viable in long-term. If Africa makes an effort, is committed, and fully commits resources to putting indigenous animal genetic resources at the forefront of combating
food insecurity and accelerating the achievement of SDGs, it can achieve more under the adverse prevailing climate change induce environmental conditions. Our personal opinion is that we would not have had the ongoing food problems, even in the face of climate change, if Africa had over the years implemented the necessary mechanisms to develop and promote local animal genetic resources. What lies ahead in terms of climate change effect on food security in Africa is anyone's
guess – but whatever it is, promoting continental adapted indigenous animal genetic resources portfolio is ready to handle it. Development and promotion of African animal genetic resources should be part of a continental strategy to transform smallholder animal production by 2050, in line with the goals of achieving the SGDs, to improve rural household food security, and bringing rural economy prosperity, resilience, sustainability, and all other desired animal related food outcomes
for rural healthy diets. African animal genetic resources are the most important but underutilized resource to address the issue of ongoing food insecurity. The responsible use of local animal genetic resources through climate smart animal husbandry practices also contributes to food security, rural development and increased employment opportunities. African genetic improvement programs
involving indigenous animal genetic resources must be considered as regards to local agriculture and livestock development aspirations, appropriateness to local reality and livelihood security, as well as environmental friendliness. Animal agriculture will fill in the enormous gaps in the continent's food supply if this animal group receives adequate attention and is used integrated properly in crop and livestock systems which characterize smallholder farming sector in Africa. Because they have evolved over time to accommodate the various climatic conditions and
environmental pressures on the continent, Africa's native animal genetic resources are particularly resilient. Indirectly, the impact of climate change offers a chance to use native animal genetics from Africa. The use of local animal genetic diversity has the potential to substantially improve Africa's food security landscape hence should be given special consideration for sociocultural, environmental, and economic aspects, and with regard for smallholder farmer�specific factors of interest. African animal genetic resources have contributed significantly to the food and nutrition security aspects of the millions of people in their communities of origin and custody in Africa. The purpose of the perception piece is to educate the reader about the fundamental mechanisms that control the use of continental animal genetic resources and how the outlook for these mechanisms can be manipulated in the future for the benefit of improving food security in Africa. The discussion provides in-depth insight into the pertinent literature in understanding the significance of local animal genetic resources in terms of their contribution to food security in Africa.
... Indigenous domestic chicken is often reared under the traditional farming system by small-holder farmers in developing countries (Magothe et al., 2012;Desta et al., 2013). The indigenous chicken is popular in Ethiopia because of their tolerance to common poultry diseases and fluctuations in both feed quality and quantity, hence requiring minimum or no input (Desta and Wakeyo, 2012). ...
