Characterization of Salt Range Sheep Based on Various Quantitative and Qualitative Traits in Punjab, Pakistan

Hafiz Muhammad Bilal Akhtar; Ghulam  Bilal; Fazle  Ahad; Hafiz Muhammad  Waheed; Andleib  Qayyum; Muhammad Naeem  Riaz; Bilal  Javid

doi:10.55627/agrivet.03.01.0506

Authors

Hafiz Muhammad Bilal Akhtar National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology, NARC, Islamabad
Ghulam Bilal Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics and National Center for Livestock Breeding Genetics and Genomics (NCLBG&G), PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Fazle Ahad Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics and National Center for Livestock Breeding Genetics and Genomics (NCLBG&G), PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Hafiz Muhammad Waheed Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics and National Center for Livestock Breeding Genetics and Genomics (NCLBG&G), PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Andleib Qayyum Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics and National Center for Livestock Breeding Genetics and Genomics (NCLBG&G), PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Muhammad Naeem Riaz National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology, NARC, Islamabad
Bilal Javid National Institute for Genomics and Advanced Biotechnology, NARC, Islamabad

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55627/agrivet.03.01.0506

Keywords:

Characterization, Genomics, Latti, Quantitative, Qualitative

Abstract

The current study was conducted to characterize Salt Range sheep breed in arid region of Punjab, Pakistan on the basis of various quantitative and qualitative traits. Salt Range sheep breed in local culture is called as Latti sheep. The sample under study comprised of 252 female and 50 male animals having average age ranging between six to eight months. Data on sixteen traits were recorded at various locations, including University Research Farm in Koont, Gujjar Khan, Rawalpindi, Barani Livestock Production Research Institute in Kherimurat, Attock, and private herds nearby. Quantitative traits included live body weight (LBW), body length (BL), height at wither (HW), ear length (EL), head length (HL), heart girth (HG), tail circumference (TLC), mandibular circumference (MC), teat circumference (TC), teat length (TL), scrotal length (SL), and scrotal circumference (SC). Moreover, qualitative traits encompassed body wool color, body skin color, horn presence, and facial head profile. The data was organized based on sex and herd which was analyzed using a mixed linear model in SAS. The Phenotypic correlations between different traits were also estimated. The mean values ± standard deviations of LBW, BL, HW, EL, HL, HG, TLC, MC, TC, TL, SL, and SC were as follows: 48.34±10.09 kg, 67.83±7.45 cm, 73.50±6.24 cm, 17.17±7.43 cm, 18.23±3.79 cm, 93.01±10.96 cm, 63.06±10.51 cm, 34.32±5.38 cm, 3.92±1.43 cm, 4.14±1.57 cm, 12.04±3.52 cm, and 20.10±7.21 cm, respectively. The study observed an effect of sex on LBW. Similarly, EL, HL, HG, TLC, and MC also significantly differed between males and females; however, body length (BL) and Height at wither (HW) did not exhibit significant differences (P≥0.05) between the two sexes. This study phenotypically characterized Salt Range sheep breed by investigating its various quantitative and qualitative traits, according to food and agriculture organization (FAO) breed characterization guidelines. The current study generated phenotypic information which highlighted the importance of Salt Range sheep for future conservation and application of genomics related to its breed improvement for various traits.

References

Abera, B., K. Kebede, S. Gizaw and T. Feyera. 2014. On-farm phenotypic characterization of indigenous sheep types in Selale Area, Central Ethiopia. Journal of Veterinary Science & Technology, 5.

Afzal, M. and A. Naqvi. 2004. Livestock resources of Pakistan: present status and future trends. Quarterly Science Vision, 9: 1-2.

Al-Sabea, W. S., D. Al-Zwean and M. A. Al-Faham. 2020. Study of phenotypic distribution of local iraqi sheep. Plant Archives, 20: 6569-78.

Deribe, B., D. Beyene, K. Dagne, T. Getachew, S. Gizaw and A. Abebe. 2021. Morphological diversity of northeastern fat-tailed and northwestern thin-tailed indigenous sheep breeds of Ethiopia. Heliyon, 7.

Elzarei, M., E. Mousa and S. AL-Sharari. 2021. Phenotypic correlation between body measurements in Saudi sheep in Qassim region. International Journal of Biology, 13: 1-26.

Esquivelzeta, C., M. Fina, R. Bach, C. Madruga, G. Caja, J. Casellas and J. Piedrafita. 2011. Morphological analysis and subpopulation characterization of Ripollesa sheep breed. Animal Genetic Resources/Resources génétiques animales/Recursos genéticos animales, 49: 9-17.

FAO. 2012. Phenotypic characterization of animal genetic resources. FAO Animal Production and Health Guidelines No. 11. Rome.

Hailemariam, F., D. Gebremicheal and H. Hadgu. 2018. Phenotypic characterization of sheep breeds in Gamogofa zone. Agriculture & Food Security, 7: 1-7.

Ibrahim, A., W. T. Artama, I. G. S. Budisatria, R. Yuniawan, B. A. Atmoko and R. Widayanti. 2021. Regression model analysis for prediction of body weight from body measurements in female Batur sheep of Banjarnegara District, Indonesia. Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity, 22: 2723-30.

Khan, K. M., N. Kumar, D. Chakraborty, I. Faried, R. Sharma, S. Bhatt, D. Kumar and R. Taggar. 2017. Phenotypic characterization of Purky sheep population of Kargil district. Indian Journal of Animal Research, 51: 625-29.

Khan, M. S., M. Khan, S. Ahmad and S. Mahmood. 2007. Continuing education article genetic resources and diversity in Pakistani sheep. International Journal of Agricultrue and Biology, 6: 941-44.

Melaku, S., A. Kidane, S. Abegaz, A. Tarekegn and A. Tesfa. 2019. Phenotypic characterization of Simien sheep in Simien mountain region, Ethiopia. International Journal of Agriculture and Biosciences, 8: 178-85.

Mirza, I., J. Jadoon, M. Naqvi and A. Ali. 1988. Performance of lambs fed urea molasses blocks vs concentrate. Asian-Australasian journal of animal sciences, 1: 27-31.

Moaeen-ud-Din, M., G. Bilal, J. M. Reecy and M. Sajjad. 2019. Effect of breed, age and sex on body weight and various body measurements in Azad Jammu and Kashmir goat breeds. Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 56.

Nsoso, S. J., B. Podisi, E. Otsogile, B. Mokhutshwane and B. Ahmadu. 2004. Phenotypic characterization of indigenous Tswana goats and sheep breeds in Botswana: continuous traits. Tropical Animal Health and Production, 36: 789-800.

Purdy, A., P. B. Pathare, Y. Wang, A. P. Roskilly and Y. Huang. 2018. Towards sustainable farming: Feasibility study into energy recovery from bio-waste on a small-scale dairy farm. Journal of Cleaner Production, 174: 899-904.

Rafiq, M. 1995. Status and scope of small ruminants production in dry areas of Pakistan-Review. Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences, 8: 205-12.

Rafiq, M., S. Mumtaz, N. Akhtar and M. Khan. 2007. Effect of strategic supplementation with multi-nutrient urea molasses blocks on body weight and body condition score of Lohi sheep owned by tenants of Pakistan. Small Ruminant Research, 70: 200-08.

Rathnakumara, W., W. Abeygunawardena, M. Deepani, A. Amarasinghe, L. Lokugalappatti, L. Samaranayake, D. Rathnayake, P. Alexander and R. Rabel. 2015. Phenotypic Characterization of Jaffna Local Sheep, an Indigenous Livestock Breed of Sri Lanka. 67th Annual Scientific Sessions of the Sri Lanka Veterinary Association: 14.

Selvakkumar, R., T. Sivakumar, S. M. Sundaram, K. T. P. Jawahar and T. T. Vanan. 2016. Phenotypic characterization of vembur sheep in its breeding tract. Indian Veterinary Journal, 93: 36-38.

Taberlet, P., E. Coissac, J. Pansu and F. Pompanon. 2011. Conservation genetics of cattle, sheep, and goats. Comptes Rendus Biologies, 334: 247-54.