Smallholder farmers have been affected by drought impacts for several years. Sekhukhune district is characterized by poor and unreliable rainfall, frequent droughts and periodic flooding most of the time. Due to low and unreliable rainfall the smallholder farmers in the Sekhukhune district are finding it difficult to obtain high crop yields. As result of unreliable rainfall the majority of the households in the district are food insecure. The drought impacts in the Sekhukhune district has affected smallholder farmers in different ways including economically, socially and the production. Sekhukhune district has been receiving lower rainfall due to the effects of high extreme climatic events, climate variability and change. The impact of lower rainfall has negative effects on the agricultural sector, resulting in decrease in agricultural activities, loss of livestock, shortage of drinking water, low yields and shortage of seeds for subsequent cultivation in the district. The lowest average annual rainfall recorded was 438 mm in 1992. Limpopo Province including the Sekhukhune district has been characterised by low rainfall and recurrent drought problems especially in 1981/1984, 1988/1989, 1991/92 and in the 2004 and these hinder agricultural production in the province. The majority of farmers in the Sekhukhune district in 1992 lost high volumes of crops and livestock due to shortages of water and because of drought problems during that year. It was highlighted by several experts that the drought impacts in the Sekhukhune district are not only affecting the crop and the livestock smallholders, it is also affecting the vegetation status in the district. The quality and status of vegetation can be severely impacted by drought periods. The combination of these factors, for example low rainfall, poor vegetation condition and a range of other constraints, heightened during droughts, unfortunately produces a range of additional stressors for farmers in the Sekhukhune district. Poor vegetation usually means poor grazing and therefore poor cattle condition. This can further translate into loss of livelihoods as poor cattle often receive poor market prices.

The objective of this work was to estimate and compare the growth curve parameters for live weight of indigenous Venda and Naked Neck chickens and carry out some analyses to test the existence of differences in the growth pattern between these breeds. The data were collected from the two breeds of chickens that were reared from day-old to 21 weeks of age. Two hundred chickens (100 of each breed) were used. Three different non-linear models, namely Gompertz, Logistic and Richards, were used to define the growth curves of the chickens. Models were compared using Coefficients of determination (R 2 values), A parameter values, the Durbin-Watson Statistic (DW) test for autocorrelation, computing difficulty based on the number of iterations needed for convergence and size of residual variances. The R 2 were high for all models: 0.996, 0.990 and 0.997 for Gompertz, Logistic and Richards, respectively. Residual variances were 2240, 5924 and 1154 for Gompertz, Logistic and Richards, respectively. The Gompertz model was observed to be suitable for explaining the growth of the chickens. Breed differences were observed in the growth parameters of chickens. The Venda breed was observed to be late maturing and heavier at maturity while the Naked Neck was shown to have a higher growth rate, reaching maturity earlier but attaining a lighter mature weight.

Data on linear body measurements (LBM) of ca. 100 Zulu sheep raised under extensive management systems at four sites in northern KwaZulu-Natal were collected over a period of 2.5 years (October 2000 to May 2003. Data were used to quantify the live weight (LW), heart girth (HG), wither height (WH) and scrotum circumference (SC) of sheep in different age groups as well as the effects of some environmental factors on their LBM. Teeth numbers were used to estimate the age of sheep. The variation in LBM was influenced significantly by the location where an animal was raised and by its age. Mature rams that have three and four pairs of incisors had LWs of 37 and 38 kg, HG of 79 and 80 cm and WH of 65 and 64 cm, respectively. Mature ewes had LWs of 30 and 32 kg, HG of 76 cm and WH of 62 and 61 cm. Differences of 15 kg, 18 kg and 22 kg in LW among sheep with full sets of milk teeth and 28 kg, 35 kg and 40 kg among mature sheep were found between populations. The SC increased with age in mature rams (three and four pairs of incisors) and was 27 cm as compared to 18 cm for younger rams. Ear size ranged from ear buds to large ears of 9 -14 cm. However, type of ear-length was found not to have any particular influence on the variation in LBM of Zulu sheep. It was concluded that an investigation of genetic variation between the populations would be necessary to develop effective conservation and utilization programmes and strategies for the breed. _______________________________________________________________________________________

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Zulu sheep are Nguni sheep of Zululand and are adapted to the harsh conditions of KwaZulu-Natal. They are used by rural farmers for economic purposes. Their numbers are declining, indicating a potential extinction threat. Knowledge of their phenotypic and genotypic characteristics is essential for conservation planning. In this review, there is a focus on the utilization, socio-economic aspects, phenotypic and genotypic characteristics as well as a proposed breeding programme. A survey has shown that rural farmers in the areas of northern KwaZulu-Natal prefer to keep this breed for its adaptability, resistance to diseases and meat quality. Zulu sheep are small-framed multi-coloured animals. Mature males weigh up to 38 kg and females up to 32 kg. Based on four morphological traits and live weight, phenotypic diversity between three populations was estimated at 48%. A genetic diversity between these three populations was estimated at 22%. Live weight of Zulu sheep can be estimated using the heart girth and wither height measurements. Scrotum circumference of young rams (up to 22 months old) is reliable for estimating the live weight. Animals that were characterized in the studies were grazed extensively and no supplements were provided. There is therefore a potential of weight increase if these animals are reared in a semi-extensive environment. An open nucleus breeding scheme is thus recommended for a sustainable use and conservation of this breed. For more conclusive results, larger numbers of phenotypic and genetic characteristics, in larger numbers of Zulu sheep populations, should be investigated.