Microlivestock Little-Known Small Animals with a Promising Economic Future (1991) / Chapter Skim
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5 Chicken
5 Chicken
Pages 79-90
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From page 79... ...
Taxonomists accepting evidence for descent exclusively from the red junglefowl refer to the domestic form as Gallus Callus, and those believing in a descent from this and other species refer to it as Gallus domesticus. See sidebar, page 86.
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From page 80... ...
Notably lacking is an understanding of the factors limiting egg production, which is markedly low and perhaps could be raised dramatically with modest effort. AREA OF POTENTIAL USE Worldwide.
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From page 81... ...
The indigenous chickens of Asia are probably descended directly from the wild junglefowl. Those of West Africa are believed descended from European birds brought by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century; those of Latin America probably descend from Spanish birds introduced soon after the time of Columbus.
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From page 82... ...
A commercial bird may produce 280 eggs annually, but a scavenger may produce close to none. Commonly, a farmyard hen lays a dozen eggs, takes three weeks to hatch out a brood of chicks, stays with the chicks six weeks or more, and only then starts laying again.
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From page 83... ...
In many countries, the village chicken's meat is preferred to that of commercial broilers because it has better texture and stronger Havor. Even in countries with vast poultry industries there is a growing demand for the tasty, "organically grown," free-ranging chicken.
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From page 84... ...
Such low production is common throughout the Third World and is caused by a combination of low genetic potential, inadequate nutrition, and poor management. Villagers rarely provide nest boxes or laying areas, so that some eggs are just not found.
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From page 85... ...
Even modest predator controls can be highly beneficial. Building crude and inexpensive nest boxes and constructing a simple holding area around them can substantially raise production by ensuring that more chicks survive.
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From page 86... ...
For one thing, the modern chicken selectively bred in the temperate zone is highly susceptible to heat and humidity; the junglefowl, on the other hand, is not. It inhabits the warmest and most humid parts of Asia: Sri Lanka, India, Burma, Thailand, and most of Southeast Asia.
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From page 87... ...
with imprinting and could prove useful as domestic fowl, especially in marginal habitats. They are everywhere considered culinary luxuries and their meat commands premium prices.
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From page 88... ...
It still occurs in the wild in southern Chile and on Easter Island. The araucanian has been called the "Easter-egg chicken" because it lays light green, light blue, and olive colored eggs.
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From page 89... ...
, but the local birds had efficiencies of 11:1.4 Conservation The need for preserving genetic variability is greater in poultry, especially in chickens, than in any other form of domestic animal. North America, for instance, which years ago had 50 or more common breeds, now relies on only 2 for meat production, and the others have been largely lost.
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