Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Multivariate characterisation of the phenotypic traits of Djallonke and Sahel sheep in Northern Ghana

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Tropical Animal Health and Production Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Publisher’s Erratum to this article was published on 22 February 2014

Abstract

The characterisation of the small ruminant populations in developing countries will play a major role in the maintenance of the genetic resources as the basis for future improvement in livestock production. The present study aimed at morphological characterisation of the two main breeds of sheep in Ghana by assessing variation within and between breed populations using principal component and discriminant analyses. The two breeds were the Sahel and the Djallonke sheep of both sexes and of two groups namely, young (1 year old, consisting of 74 animals) and mature sheep (≥2 years old, comprising 219 animals). The analysis of variance revealed significant (P < 0.05) differences in the morphological traits of the Sahel and the Djallonke sheep breeds with higher values recorded for the former. Sexual dimorphism was in favour of male animals in all the morphological traits examined. Mature animals also had comparative advantage over the young. Two principal components were extracted to discern the structure of the two genetic groups. The most discriminating traits between the two sheep breeds were rump height, height at withers, neck girth and pin-bone width. Mahalanobis distance between the two genetic groups was 5.723 (P < 0.0001). The developed discriminant functions clearly discriminated and classified the Sahel and the Djallonke sheep into their breeds of origin, thus yielding 100, 93.4 and 90.4 % accurate classification for the rams, ewes and the overall sheep population, respectively. The present approach would greatly help in establishing management and conservation policies for the sustainable production of the two Ghanaian sheep breeds.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

LW:

Live weight

HW:

Height at withers

RH:

Rump height

BL:

Body length

HG:

Heart girth

NG:

Neck girth

CD:

Chest depth

PBW:

Pin-bone width

References

  • Amadou, H., Dossa, L. H., Lompo, D. J., Abdulkadir, A. and Schlecht E. 2012. A comparison between urban livestock production strategies in Burkina Faso, Mali and Nigeria in West Africa, Tropical Animal Health and Production, Available at: doi:10.1007/s11250-012-0118-0

  • Blott, S. C., Williams, J. L. and Haley, C. S., 1999. Discriminating among cattle breeds using genetic markers, Heredity, 82, 613-619

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cardellino, R. A. and Boyazoglu, J., 2009. Research opportunities in the field of animal genetic resources, Livestock Science, 120, 166–173

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carneiro, H., Louvandini, H., Paiva, S. R., Macedo, F., Mernies, B. and McManus, C., 2010. Morphological characterization of sheep breeds in Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia, Small Ruminant Research, 94, 58-65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cerqueira, J. O. L., Feas, X., Iglesias, A., Pacheco, L. F. and Araujo, J. P. P., 2011. Morphological traits in Portuguese Bordaleira de Entre Douro e Minho sheep: divergence of the breed, Animal Reproduction and Science, 51, 635-641

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chacon, E., Macedo, F., Velazquez, F., Paiva, S. R., Pineda, E. and McManus, C., 2011. Morphological measurements and body indices for Cuban Creole goats and their crossbreds, Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia, 40, 1671-1679

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO., 2011a. Draft guidelines on molecular genetic characterization of animal genetic resources, Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, 13th Regular Session, 18-22 July, 2011, Rome. Available at: http://www.fao.org/docrep/meeting/022/am652e.pdf

  • FAO., 2011b. Draft guidelines on phenotypic characterization of animal genetic resources, Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, 13th Regular Session, 18-22 July, 2011, Rome. Available at http://www.fao.org/docrep/meeting/022/am651e.pdf

  • Festa-Bianchet, M., Jorgenson, J. T., King, W. J., Smith, K. G. and Wishart, W. D., 1996. The development of sexual dimorphism: Seasonal and lifetime mass changes in bighorn sheep, Canadian Journal of Zoology, 74, 330-342

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gizaw, S., Komen, H., Hanote, O., van Arendonk, J. A. M., Kemp, S., Haile, A., Mwai, O. and Dessie, T., 2011. Characterization and conservation of indigenous sheep genetic resources: A practical framework for developing countries. ILRI Research Report No. 27. Nairobi, Kenya, ILRI

  • Hamito, D., 2009. Estimation of weight and age of sheep and goats. Ethiopia sheep and goat productivity improvement program (ESGPIP), Technical bulletin No. 23, 11

  • Hoffman, I., 2010. Climate change and the characterization, breeding and conservation of animal genetic resources. Animal Genetics, 41, 32-46

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kefena, E., Beja-Pereira, A., Han, J. L., Haile, A., Mohammed, Y. K. and Dessie, T., 2011. Eco-geographical structuring and morphological diversities in Ethiopian donkey populations, Livestock Science, 141, 232-241

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Legaz, E., Cervantes, I., Perez-Cabal, M. A., de la Fuente, L. F., Martinez, R., Goyache, F. and Gutierrez, J. P., 2011. Multivariate characterisation of morphological traits in Assaf (Assaf.E) sheep, Small Ruminant Research, 100, 122-130

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pundir, R. K., Singh, P. K., Singh, K. P. and Dangi, P. S., 2011. Factor analysis of biometric traits of Kankrej cows to explain body conformation, Asian-Australian Journal of Animal Science, 24, 449-456

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodero, E., Gonzalez, A., Luque, M., Herrera, M. and Gutierrez-Estrada, J. C., 2011. Classification of Spanish autochthonous bovine breeds: Morphometric study using classical and heuristic techniques, Livestock Science, doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2011.09.022

  • SAS., 2003. Statistical Analysis System. SAS Stat. SAS Institute Incorporation, Cary NC 27513, USA

  • SPSS., 2010. Statistical Package for Social Sciences. SPSS Incorporation, 444 Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL60611, USA

  • Thornton, P. K., 2010. Livestock production: recent trends, future prospects, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 365, 2853-2867

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Toro, M. A., Meuwissen, T. H. E., Fernandez, J., Shaat, I. and Maki-Tanila, A., 2011. Assessing the genetic diversity in small farm animal populations, Animal, 5, 1669–1683

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Traoré, A., Tamboura, H. H., Kabore, A., Royo, L. J., Fernandez, I., Álvarez, I., Sangare, M., Bouchel, D., Poivey, J. P., Francois, D., Toguyeni, A., Sawadogo, L. and Goyache, F., 2008. Multivariate characterization of morphological traits in Burkina Faso sheep, Small Ruminant Research, 80, 62-67

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A. and Akinyemi, M. O., 2010. An evaluation of sexual size dimorphism in Uda sheep using multifactorial discriminant analysis, Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section A-Animal Science, 60, 74-78

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A. and Ibrahim, I. A., 2011. Multivariate analysis of morphostructural characteristics in Nigerian indigenous sheep, Italian Journal of Animal Science, 10, 83-86

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A., Idahor, K. O., Haruna, H. S., Wheto, M. and Amusan, S. 2010b. Multivariate analysis of phenotypic differentiation in Bunaji and Sokoto Gudali cattle, Acta Argiculturae Slovenica, 96/2, 75-80

    Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A., Salako, A. E., Imumorin, I. G., Ige, A. O. and Akinyemi, M. O., 2010a. Discriminant analysis of morphometric differentiation in the West African Dwarf and Red Sokoto goats, South African Journal of Animal Science, 40, 381-387

    Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A., Salako, A. E. and Imumorin, I. G., 2011a. Comparative multivariate analysis of biometric traits of West African Dwarf and Red Sokoto goats, Tropical Animal Health and Production, 43, 561-566

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yakubu, A., Salako, A. E. and Abdullah, A. R., 2011b. Varimax rotated principal component analysis of the zoometrical traits of Uda sheep, Archivos de Zootecnia, 60, 813-816

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yokoo, M. J., Lobo, R. B., Araujo, F. R. C., Bezerra, L. A. F., Sainz, R. D. and Albuquerque, L. G., 2010. Genetic associations between carcass traits measured by real-time ultrasound and scrotal circumference and growth traits in Nelore cattle, Journal of Animal Science, 88, 52-58

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the staff of the Pong-Tamale Livestock Breeding Station especially the head of the sheep unit, Mr. Lawrence Dartay, and the manager, Mr. Ibrahim Shahadu, for providing the experimental animals and being instrumental in the data gathering process.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Animal Science, University for Development Studies, P.O. Box TL 1882, Tamale, Ghana

    Peter T. Birteeb

  2. Department of Animal Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14583, USA

    Sunday Olusola Peters

  3. Department of Animal Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Shabu-Lafia Campus, P.M.B. 135, Lafia, Nigeria

    Abdulmojeed Yakubu

  4. Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, PMB 2240, Nigeria

    Sunday Olusola Peters, Matthew Adekunle Adeleke & Michael Ohiokhuaobo Ozoje

Authors
  1. Peter T. Birteeb
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Sunday Olusola Peters
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Abdulmojeed Yakubu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Matthew Adekunle Adeleke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Michael Ohiokhuaobo Ozoje
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Ohiokhuaobo Ozoje.

Additional information

An erratum to this article is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11250-014-0555-z.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Birteeb, P.T., Peters, S.O., Yakubu, A. et al. Multivariate characterisation of the phenotypic traits of Djallonke and Sahel sheep in Northern Ghana. Trop Anim Health Prod 45, 267–274 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-012-0211-4

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-012-0211-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation