CONTRIBUTIONS ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF INCUBATION EGGS PRODUCED BY ADULT PHEASANT FEMALES
Al. Usturoi, I. Vacaru-Opriş, M.G. Usturoi
Abstract
The main goal of reproduction pheasants breeding is to re-populate hunting domains or to use them in poultry meat production. Within the intensive farming of reproduction pheasants, incubation eggs quality affects hatching results and the future performances of new-hatched chicks. The biological material included incubation eggs issued from the four main stages of laying (onset, peak, plateau, ending), specific to the adult pheasant reproduction females (ssp. Phasianus colchicus). Data processing revealed that eggs weight increased from 28.64g (laying onset) till 32.16g (ending), as well as the egg shape index (78.14% during onset, comparing to 79.22% during ending). Despite this, eggshell thickness was reduced from 0.424 mm in the laying onset to just 0.378 mm when laying ceased. This fact induced a decrease of the shell breaking strength, from 0.541 kgf/cm2 during onset, till 0.495 kgf/cm2 during ending. The Haugh Index, as main parameter in incubation eggs quality assessment, increased from 76.05 UH (onset) till 76.89 UH (ending). The conclusion of our study showed that quality traits of the eggs laid by pheasant reproduction females modified as their age modifies; however, better results related to incubation parameters could be achieved for the eggs laid during full maturity.
