Heritability of Body Weight in Fayoumi

INTRODUCTION SELECTION is considered to be the best tool for genetic improvement in a given population. Heritability of a character is an important factor affecting genetic improvement. In a previous paper, Issawi et al. (1963) studied heritability of fertility and hatchability in Fayoumi. The present paper deals with the study of heritability of body weight in Fayoumi. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Many investigators estimated heritability of body weight in chickens. Spector (1956) summarized the different estimates of this character and concluded that it was highly heritable. In Single Comb White Leghorn, Lerner et al. (1949) stated that heritability of body weight at twelve weeks of age was 0.475, and 0.597 and 0.506 on the basis of the contribution of sire, dam, and both, respectively. Fagan (1949), reported similar figures for heritability of body weight at twelve weeks of age, being in the range from 0.35–0.50. El-Ibiary and Shaffner (1951), reported…