Phenotypic characterization of Algerian D'man sheep breed in Adrar oases

Abderrahmane Boubekeur 1, Mohammed Tahar Benyoucef 2, Mohammed Lounassi 1, Abdelkader Slimani 1, Abdelkader Maref 1

Introduction

In Algeria, the sheep is composed in majority by “hardy” breeds in different

ecological zones. The D'man breed is located in the South-West zone (Fig. 1).

This breed is classified among the endangered breeds which need to be

studied and preserved.

this study aims to characterize morphologically D'man breed for use in the

preservation and enhancement of its reproductive remarkable qualities.

Materials and methods

The study focused on the analysis of quantitative (7) and qualitative (5)

traits of 354 D'man breed heads over 2 years (Fig. 2).

The fixed effects including the sex and the age of animals were estimated by

analysis using the general linear model SPSS software.

Results and discussion

The studied D'man breed animals have several coat colors that might be

unique or combined (Tab. 1 and Img. 1).

The D'man animals observed are lanky guy with a light frame. They are

characterized by small size, a thin and long head and a weak skeleton (Tab.

2).

Males and females of the breed D'man do not present horns (Img. 2). This

breed is distinguished by a different traits (Img. 3).

The effect of sex and age was observed highly significant (p <0.001) on most

of the analyzed variables (Tab. 3).

Conclusions

Characterization studies should facilitate the design of objective and reliable

predictions on the performances of animals.

They are intended to promote genetic resources in their environment while

contributing to their conservation for the needs of present and future

generations.

Figure 2: Body measurements studied. HG:

Heart Girth; WH: Wither Height; BL: Body

Length; HL: Head Length; EL: Ear Length;

TL: Tail length.

Colors Females Males Total

white spotted 10,42 5,26 9,04

Brown 25,87 7,37 20,90

Brown and white 15,44 5,26 12,71

Black 16,99 65,26 29,94

Black and white 11,97 14,74 12,71

Black and brown 3,47 2,11 3,11

Black, white and brown 3,09 0,00 2,26

Russet 12,74 0,00 9,32

Table 1: Values of

frequencies (%) of the

color of the body coat

of D’man animals

studied.

Variables Mean ±SE CV (%) Min Max

Weight (kg) 35,79 ± 0,38 20,0 24,0 68,0

Wither height (cm) 66,13 ± 0,31 8,8 53,0 87,0

Body length (cm) 69,49 ± 0,23 6,4 59,0 85,0

Heart girth (cm) 79,37 ± 0,38 9,1 67,0 104

Head length (cm) 21,89 ± 0,68 5,8 20,0 26,0

Ears Length (cm) 13,56 ± 0,45 6,3 12,0 16,0

Tail length (cm) 42,94 ± 0,24 10,6 30,0 58,0

Table 2: Descriptive

parameters of

morphological criteria

measured in D'man

animals.

Variation N Weight WH BL HG HL EL TL

Sex *** *** *** *** *** Ns ***

Female 259 33,6±0,2 63,9±0,2 67,5±0,2 77,0±0,3 21,6±0,1 13,6±0,1 42,2±0,3

Male 95 41,6±1,0 72,3±0,6 74,8±0,3 85,8±0,9 22,8±0,1 13,5±0,1 44,9±0,4

SD (m/f) 1,24 1,14 1,11 1,11 1,06 0,99 1,09

Age ** Ns *** ** * Ns *

2 years 189 34,9±0,6 65,7±0,4 68,6±0,4 78,2±0,6 21,7±0,1 13,5±0,1 42,3±0,4

3 years 90 36,7±0,5 66,5±0,5 69,9±0,4 80,3±0,6 22,1±0,1 13,6±0,1 43,3±0,4

4 years 75 37,0±0,9 66,6±0,7 70,9±0,4 81,1±0,8 22,1±0,1 13,7±0,1 44,1±0,5

* p <0.05; ** p <0.01; *** p <0.001, ns: not significant, SD: sexual dimorphism.

Table 3: Effect of age and sex on parameters studied in D’man breed.

Figure 1: Area of the D’man sheep

breed in Algeria

Image 2: hornless Male of the D’man

Image 3: White spot on head And

White tail tip traits.

Image 1. Pigmentation of animals D'man

Acknowledgments The authors thank the staff of the INRAA (headquarter in Algiers and Adrar station), the technical staff of Agricultural Services and sheep breeders surveyed in the Adrar region. Mr. BOUBEKEUR Abderrahmen: ma.boubekeur@gmail.com

Algeria: 1 National Institute of Agronomic Research of Algeria, Adrar station. 2 National High School of Agronomy (ENSA) ElHarrach, Algiers