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Abstract

Thirteen qualitative and six morphometric variables on a total of 651 adult cattle (76 oxen and 575 cows) from four purposively selected districts were recorded to characterize the cattle populations in and around the breeding tract of Raya cattle. General linear model, frequency, and multivariate analysis procedures of Statistical Analysis Software (SAS 9.0) were used to analyze the data by splitting and merging the sexes. Higher measurement values for oxen were recorded over the cows. Location affects the studied traits significantly. The cattle population from Habru district was significantly differentiated from Raya cattle. Among the districts of Raya cattle, lowest values for most of the linear measurements were observed in Kobo district. Majority of the Raya cattle possess upright, lyre-shaped horn, small, and erected hump placed at the cervical thoracic position, large dewlap, naval flap, and perpetual sheath sizes and dominantly dark red body color with uniform body color pattern. Stepwise discriminant function analysis reveals horn length, ear length, and height at wither were the first three most important morphometric variables used in discriminating the cattle populations. Canonical discrimination analysis showed that the first canonical structure explains majority (94.13%) of the total variation with eigenvalue of 2.07 and canonical correlation of 82.14%. Discriminant function analysis showed the classification of an average 61% of the studied animals into their respective districts. Pairwise Mahalanobis distances between populations from different districts were found to be highly significant. Habru cattle population relates distantly from Raya cattle except its short distance with Kobo district. The shortest distance was observed between Raya cattle of Alamata and Raya Azebo districts. In conclusion, cattle from Alamata, Raya Azebo, and Kobo districts can be categorized as Raya cattle, while strong similarities between the first two districts in showing the real characteristics and morphology of Raya cattle were also revealed.
/Published online: 2 November 2020
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Phenotypic characterization of Raya cattle in northern Ethiopia
Amine Mustefa
1
&Teklewold Belayhun
1
&Awoke Melak
1
&Mulata Hayelom
2
&Dereje Tadesse
3
&Abebe Hailu
1
&
Abraham Assefa
1
Received: 24 February 2020 /Accepted: 17 November 2020
#Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract
Thirteen qualitative and six morphometric variables on a total of 651 adult cattle (76 oxen and 575 cows) from four purposively
selected districts were recorded to characterize the cattle populations in and around the breeding tract of Raya cattle. General
linear model, frequency, and multivariate analysis procedures of Statistical Analysis Software (SAS 9.0) were used to analyze the
data by splitting and merging the sexes. Higher measurement values for oxen were recorded over the cows. Location affects the
studied traits significantly. The cattle population from Habru district was significantly differentiated from Raya cattle. Among the
districts of Raya cattle, lowest values for most of the linear measurements were observed in Kobo district. Majority of the Raya
cattle possess upright, lyre-shaped horn, small, and erected hump placed at the cervical thoracic position, large dewlap, naval flap,
and perpetual sheath sizes and dominantly dark red body color with uniform body color pattern. Stepwise discriminant function
analysis reveals horn length, ear length, and height at wither were the first three most important morphometric variables used in
discriminating the cattle populations. Canonical discrimination analysis showed that the first canonical structure explains ma-
jority (94.13%) of the total variation with eigenvalue of 2.07 and canonical correlation of 82.14%. Discriminant function analysis
showed the classification of an average 61% of the studied animals into their respective districts. Pairwise Mahalanobis distances
between populations from different districts were found to be highly significant. Habru cattle population relates distantly from
Raya cattle except its short distance with Kobo district. The shortest distance was observed between Raya cattle of Alamata and
Raya Azebo districts. In conclusion, cattle from Alamata, Raya Azebo, and Kobo districts can be categorized as Raya cattle,
while strong similarities between the first two districts in showing the real characteristics and morphology of Raya cattle were
also revealed.
Keywords Cattle .Distance .Morphometric .Multivariate .Qualitative .Raya Azebo
Introduction
Ethiopia has the largest cattle population size in Africa (60.39
million heads) without counting some zones of the highly
populated regions (Afar and Somali) (CSA 2018). Majority
of the cattle populations are indigenous breeds found in the
rural part of the country, while some exotic and crossbreds
also exist mainly in the urban and peri-urban areas. Beside the
large population size distributed widely throughout the coun-
try, farmers and pastoralists get multiple functions from their
productions and services. Cattle genetic resources serve as
sources of meat, milk, hide, manure, draft power, and nutrient
recycling (Getachew and Gashaw 2001).
Diversity in animal genetic resource is important for cur-
rent and future research and development works. Diversity
allows the indigenous genetic resources to adapt and produce
in a more diversified agro ecologies. Variation with in and
among breeds is also one of the key inputs in genetic improve-
ment and conservation programs. It is more likely to bring
genetic improvement in a population with high variation than
low variation. This increment in production and productivity
will in turn help us to answer the food security problems,
market requirements, and nutritional gaps. Similarly, as the
variation within and among breeds increases, it brings a good
opportunity to find adaptable breeds to the changing agro-
ecology due to different factors including the climate change.
Therefore, to better understand the level of diversity and po-
tential of our indigenous animal genetic resources, proper
*Amine Mustefa
aminemustefa32@gmail.com
1
Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2
Mekelle Biodiversity Center, Mekelle, Ethiopia
3
Debre Berhan University, Debre Berhan, Ethiopia
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-020-02486-1
Tropical Animal Health and Production (2021) 53: 48
6
Content courtesy of Springer Nature, terms of use apply. Rights reserved.
... On the other hand, the Merhabete sheep populations had the lowest value (64%) which shows their shared similarities with the other two sheep populations while majority of them still showed differences from the others. However, this value is much higher than the results of [22] which is 42% on the genetically similar Raya cattle populations reared in different locations. ...
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Climate change is a major development challenge to Ethiopia. Climate change is expected to adversely affect all economic sectors, eco-regions, and social groups. Agriculture is one of the most vulnerable sectors as it is highly dependent on rainfall. This report synthesizes four case studies focusing on the impacts, vulnerabilities and local adaptation practices in Ethiopia‘s agricultural sector, including policy and institutional responses. The case studies were carried out in nine districts, representing the major agro-ecological and farming systems. The case studies use qualitative data generated through rapid appraisal methods, complimented with a review of relevant literature. The results show that there are changes in local climatic conditions, manifested through several indicators. These include increased temperatures, changes in rainfall amounts and patterns, and increased incidence of drought and flood events. Drought was a major problem in almost all sites, while floods affected localized areas in some of the sites. Informants attributed climate change to poor management of natural resources (forests and grazing lands), with rapid population growth as a key driver. Various adverse effects of climate change on crop and livestock production, natural resources and livelihoods were reported. Communities used a wide range of coping and adaptive strategies that included adjustments in crop and livestock production, natural resources management, and diversification into new food and income sources. In terms of policies and institutional response, Ethiopia is arguably in a good state of preparedness to address climate change. Despite the communities‘ coping and adaptation strategies, the policies and institutions in place, agriculture and food security are increasingly being negatively affected by climate change. This implies local coping and adaptive capacities are being overwhelmed by climate change effects. There is, therefore, need for effective implementation of planned adaptation interventions as outlined in the national policy and strategy documents and to build resilience in agriculture, natural resources and food security sectors. Also, further research is needed to fill in crucial knowledge gaps, some of which are identified and discussed in this report.
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Morphometric characteristics of Arado cattle breed and livestock keeper perceptions on the breed's performance were studied in 279 smallholder farms and on 110 adult male and female animals in three districts, namely "Asgede-Tsimbla", "Tahatay-Koraro" and "Medebay-Zana". The districts were/are known to be the main tract of "Arado" cattle breed in Northern Ethiopia. Data were collected by way of questionnaire survey, farm visit and measurements of morphometric characteristics. All the smallholder farms were practicing mixed crop-livestock production and their primary reason of keeping "Arado" cattle was for draught purpose. Cows give an average milk yield of 1 to 2 l per day for an average lactation period of 7.3 months. The breed is also said to have appreciable resistance to disease and drought conditions. A total of 17 qualitative traits were assessed by visual examination. The "Arado" cattle have a uniform red coat color. Almost all animals were horned and have small to medium sized humps, located predominantly in cervico-thoracic position. They have, predominantly, straight facial and back profile, and medium to long tail length. Cows have small udder and teats. From a total of 15 body measurements taken, average heart girth values were 144.6±1.6cm and 138.0±0.8 cm, respectively, in male and in female animals. The height at wither was 115.6±0.8cm in males and 107.0±0.8cm in females, while body length was measuring 108.1±1.1cm in males and 103.5±1.3cm in females. In all quantitative traits, male animals had higher values than females (P<0.05). There was, however, no effect of spatial location (sampling district) on morphometric measurements. The breeding method practiced by almost all respondents was, however, uncontrolled natural mating. The "Arado" breed of today is found to be smaller than what was reported for the same breed some four decades back. Farmers also perceived that the "Arado" breed population has decreased over the years. Therefore, as a priority, suitable breeding strategies and conservation models should be devised for the overall improvement of the breed.