Evaluation of egg quality parameters in Bhutanese indigenous chickens vis-a-vis exotic chicken

Abstract

This study was designed to compare the physical egg quality of 4 Bhutanese indigenous chickens (BIC) namely Seim (SM), Phulom (PL), Khuilay (KL) and Yuebjha Narp (YN) with Hyline Brown (HL). A total of 160 eggs were collected to represent the sample size. The BIC egg shell colour varied from white to brownish however, egg shells with cream (51.50%) and white colour (33.00%) were considerably common. The overall mean egg weight in BIC was 47.44g with the lowest for SM (45.95g) and highest for PL (50.35g). Mean egg weight and volume (43.60±6.35) of BIC eggs were comparatively lower than Hyline Brown. The egg phenotype and correspondingly the crushing strength of five populations increased from YN < SM < KL < PL < HL. The specific gravity was the lowest and greatest for YN (1.03) and KL (1.17), respectively. Moreover, the shell thickness measures among the BIC strains were not significant (P<0.05) and ranged from 0.30mm (PL) to 0.33mm (KL). The statistical evaluation presents non-significant difference among the five chicken populations for yolk index. The albumen height of BIC ranged from 5.98mm (KL) to 6.93mm (PL) with the mean 6.54mm. The yolk weight was the lowest for SM followed by KL. Superior physical property of shell and egg shape reveals that KL is better quality among the BIC strains. Furthermore, the less fat percent content in KL also supports and this information may be used for improving this population to produce a good egg quality for consumers.

Keywords

• Economic trait
• Egg quality
• Indigenous chicken