Poultry 1 and 2 Flashcards
How many broilers is 1 pedigree female responsible for
4 million
How many genetic lines are combined to give broiler birds
4 lines
At the great grandparent level i.e one below pedigree which sex is phenotypically selected upon
Only male
Location of male reproductive anatomy in the bird
Testes are rostral and ventral to kidneys
Epididymis dorsally on testis
Vas deferens connects to cloaca
How is the phallus orientated in the male chicken
Lies on ventral lip of vent; in detumescent state directed to interior of cloaca
But during mating lymph flow causes phallus to become tumescent and ventral lip of vent everted to extude phallus
How does phallus become tumescent
Via lymph flow through interconnecting channels in phallus
Weight of mature cockerel testis
15-20g (only 1-2g when immature)
How often must cockerel mate with a female to fertilise all her eggs
once per week
How is cockerel bodyweight related to fertility
Testis size related to bodyweight and direct correlation b/w testis size and sperm output
Why do rear male and female gallus gallus chickens separately
Males need less food due to genes for feed efficiency (compared to females which have been bred for eggs)
WHat do we need to remember when rearing male and female ducks separately
Males must be within sight and sound of females for fertility
What sex ratio of males and females do we set up
Start with 10% cockerels; end up down to 8.5% by start of laying due to inactive/debilitated cockerels
How can we tell if a male is sexually active i.e working well
Cloaca more red and moist
In which poultry system is artifical insemination commonly used
Turkeys
- Since males too large to mate conventionally
How do we dilute semen with extended
50:50 ratio
What % dead is max with sperm assessment
10% dead/abnormal
Use nigrosine-eosin
How does sperm number affect fertility and hatchability
Lower sperm numbers significantly decreases fertility; also then decreases hatchability and increases early dead embryos
Female reproductive anatomy in chickens basic
Only left ovary reaches maturity; found at cephalic end of L kidney
May see vestigial right oviduct
Ovary –> infundibulum –> magnum –> isthmus –> uterus/shell gland –> vagina
Where are the sperm nests located in female repro tract
In the infundibulum
What happens in the magnum
Albumen layers laid down ~ 3hours