INCUBATION PERFORMANCE AND BODY WEIGHT DYNAMICS OF DUCKS OF DIFFERENT GENOTYPES

Abstract

The article presents the results of a comparative evaluation of hatching egg traits and live weight dynamics in young ducks of the studied groups. The study was conducted at «Bishkul Poultry Farm» LLP. The experimental birds were meat-type ducks representing the «Yesil» line, the «Ansar» breeding group, and the final two-line hybrid of the «EZh12» cross. As part of the research and production trial, two control batches of hatching eggs from each studied group were incubated. A total of 38329 eggs were incubated, including 13222 eggs from the «Yesil» line, 12370 eggs from the «EZh12» group, and 12737 eggs from the «Ansar» breeding group. During incubation, biological monitoring of embryonic development was performed, including assessment of egg fertility, embryonic mortality at different stages of development, hatchability of fertile eggs, and duckling hatch rate. Postembryonic development was evaluated based on live weight dynamics of male and female ducks from one day to 7 weeks of age. The mean weight of hatching eggs in the studied groups ranged from 84.5 to 85.1 g. Egg fertility ranged from 89.65% to 90.35%, with the highest value recorded in the «Yesil» line 90.35%. The most favorable indicators of embryonic viability were observed in the «EZh12» group: the proportion of dead embryos was 5.0%, late embryonic mortality («dead-in-shell» embryos) was 9.7%, total incubation losses were 25.05%, hatchability of fertile eggs was 83.53%, and duckling hatch rate was 74.95%. In the «Yesil» line and the «Ansar» breeding group, duckling hatch rates were 73.65 and 74.10%, respectively. Young ducks of the studied groups exhibited intensive growth with relatively low variation in live weight among the groups. The highest growth intensity was observed between 2 and 5 weeks of age. By 7 weeks of age, the live weight of male ducks ranged from 3418 to 3450 g, while that of female ducks ranged from 3119 to 3137.5 g. The highest live weight among males was recorded in the «Yesil» line 3450 g, whereas the highest live weight among females was observed in the final two-line hybrid of the «EZh12» cross 3137.5 g. Differences in live weight associated with sexual dimorphism were observed throughout the growing period. The results indicate comparable reproductive and growth performance among the studied duck groups and support their potential for further use in breeding programs. Thus, the findings are of practical relevance for further breeding and selection work aimed at improving domestic genetic resources of meat-type ducks.