Origin and exterior features analysis of geese breeds genealogical groups in Russian gene pool herd

Abstract

The geese breeds not used in industrial poultry farming have become not numerous and exist mainly as closed populations. Therefore, the study and evaluation process of their inherent characteristics is closely related to the problem of breed conservation. Herewith the main objective is not the best genotypes selection, but the reproduction of the existing ones without their inherent qualities loss. The research objective is the analyses of the relationship between the preserved goose breeds and the study of the manifestation regularity of breed marking features in related bird groups. Materials and methods. The research was carried out on the basis of Federal State Budgetary Research Institution (FSBRI) “Verkhnevolzhsky Federal Agricultural Research Center (FARC)” (town of Suzdal). Nowadays the collection of geese in Suzdal is the richest both in Russia and abroad. It amounts 21 breeds of domestic and foreign selection. The research results identified 3 related goose groups and 7 independent breeds. Conclusion. All geese from the preserved gene pool have typical exterior features for each breed. Certain breed markers were stated to be the characteristic for the breeds of different pedigrees. These studies should be used for further breeding work in selecting producers in order to preserve and improve the geese gene pool.