Evaluation of Body Weight Lines of Divergently Selected Broiler Chicken Types in a Hot-Humid Tropical Environment of Umudike, South-Eastern Nigeria

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the production performance of high and low body weight lines of divergently selected crossbred normal feather (NF), naked neck (Na) and frizzle (F) indigenous broiler chickens raised in a hot-humid environment of Umudike, South-eastern Nigeria. Results showed that targeted 6 weeks body weight in the two body weight lines were significantly (p>0.05) different, with the heavy normal feather (ExHNF) and heavy frizzle (ExHF) individuals recording the highest body weight (1512.10 and 1508.30 g), respectively. Average daily feed intake (ADFI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were also better in these heavy weight lines. The linear body measurements (LBMs) namely, body length (BL), keel length (KL) and shank length (SL) were significantly higher in the heavy body weight, when compared with the low body weight lines. It was evident from the study that the genetic background of the selected lines influenced the performance of the progenies, with each line resembling its dam of origin.