SEMEN QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF KUTTANAD, WHITE PEKIN (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus) AND MUSCOVY (Cairina moschata momelanotus) DUCKS
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Date
2011
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COLLEGE OF VETERINARY AND ANIMAL SCIENCES-MANNUTHY,THRISSUR
Abstract
An experiment was conducted to evaluate the semen quality characteristics
in twenty four adult drakes of 36 weeks age, eight each from White Pekin,
Kuttanad and Muscovy breeds, which were housed in individual cages without
any artificial lighting. All drakes were provided with a diet containing 23 per cent
Crude Protein and 2800 kcal Metabolisable Energy / kg diet and water ad libitum.
Manual Massage method was used for collection of semen. The drakes were
trained once a week for about three months and semen was routinely collected
once a week during the experimental period.
The semen was evaluated for macroscopical and microscopical parameters.
Methylene Blue Reduction Time Test was conducted to estimate the metabolic
activity of spermatozoa. The resistance of the spermatozoa to heat and cold shock
were also examined. The semen samples were diluted in four different extenders
viz. Normal Saline (NS), Phosphate Buffer Saline (PBS), Lake Poultry Semen
Extender (LPSE) and Beltsville Poultry Semen Extender (BPSE) and were kept at
room temperature and also at refrigeration temperature and the post dilution
motility was assessed at 0, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 24 hours.
There was no significant difference in the semen volume between the breeds
and also between the drakes within breeds. Majority of the semen samples were
white in colour in White Pekin (70.84 per cent), Kuttanad (66.67 per cent) and
Muscovy (100.00 per cent). White Pekin and Kuttanad semen showed a medium
thick consistency but in Muscovy the consistency was watery. The appearance
score of White Pekin and Kuttanad drake semen was similar (3.29) while it was a
little lower for Muscovy drake semen (2.46). Semen pH was found to be slightly
alkaline in all the breeds. The important semen contaminants were faecal matter
and uric acid crystals.
The density of spermatozoa differed significantly between the breeds with a
significantly lower value in Muscovy drakes. But, there was no significant
difference in the sperm concentration between the drakes of the same breed. The
percentage of live, dead, normal and abnormal sperms did not differ significantly
between breeds and also between drakes of the same breed.
The Methylene Blue Reduction Time was higher in Muscovy when
compared toWhite Pekin and Kuttanad. But, MBRT showed no significant
difference when estimated using two different extenders viz. LPSE and BPSE in
White Pekin and Muscovy. The spermatozoa of the three breeds were able to
withstand heat shock for ten minutes and cold shock for upto one hour. The
results of post dilution motility revealed that storage of the diluted samples at
refrigeration temperature prolonged the livability of spermatozoa when compared
to that stored at room temperature. The diluents containing buffer and energy
substrates viz. PBS, LPSE and BPSE were efficient in prolonging the motility.
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