Abstract
A total of 112 male and 1208 female Ross broiler breeders (30-wk-old) were used in this study to investigate whether a male to female (M/F) ratio of broiler breeder chickens may influence fertility and hatchability of hatching eggs. There were three treatments, each consisting of four pens with a size of 3.2 m ${\times}$ 6.4 m. Each pen housed approx. 100 females and 10 males to give the M/F ratio as follows: T1, 1/9; T2, 1/11; and T3, 1/13, respectively. The fertility of broiler breeder eggs ranged between 93 to 94% at 30 wk of age. At 35 wk of age, breeder eggs from T3 tended to be less fertile (P>0.05) than those from T1 and T2. The low fertility observed in T3 at 35 wk of age further reduced to reach a statistical significance at 46 wk of age (P<0.05) when compared to those of T1 and T2. Hatchability of breeder eggs among treatments tended to follow a similar trend as shown in fertility, keeping hatchability of breeder eggs from T3 low when compared to the groups of T1 and T2. Our results indicated that the M/F ratio influenced fertility and consequently hatchability of breeder eggs. Furthermore, our study suggests that either 1/9 or 1/11 M/F ratio, but not 1/13 M/F ratio, seems suitable to sustain reproductive performance of broiler breeders throughout the laying periods.
본 연구는 육용종계 암컷과수컷의 배웅비를 달리할 경우 종란의 수정율과 부화율에 미치는 영향을 구명하고자 실시 하였다. 육용종계 암컷과 수컷 비율이 각각 9:I(암컷:수컷=11:99), 11:1(9:99), 및 13:1(8:104) 이 되도록 하여 3.2 ${\times}$ 6.4m 크기의 pen에 사육하였다. 각 처리당 3반복으로, 30주령된 Ross 종계 수컷 112수 암컷 1,208수를 시험에 공시하였다. 30주령시 종란의 수정율은 93 ∼ 94% 내외로 처리간 유의차가 발견되지 않았다.