Abstract:
This paper explores the role which climate plays on the severity of diseases and seasonal mortality
rate of chicken in the guinea savanna ecological zone of Kwara State, Nigeria. Data on climate
and mortality rate of chicken collected over a period of 23 years (1991-2013) were partitioned
according to characteristics weather types. Correlation and simple regression methods were
used to analyse the data. The results of the analyses showed that weather types of each season
affect outbreak of various diseases and mortality rate differently. In the dry season weather types
outbreak of Newcastle and Gumboro diseases prevailed mostly during harmattan when mortality
rate of chicken exhibited a strong positive relationship of 0.711 with rainfall and a strong negative
relationship of 0.604 with maximum temperature. The last two months of dry season (March-April)
witnessed the reverse of the above but with Newcastle disease and heat stress plaguing chicken
production. The most prevalent chicken disease of rainy season in the study area is Coccidiosis.
During the first weather type of wet season (two months before August break) mortality rate of
chicken exhibited a strong positive relationship of 0.861 and 0.845 before August break, 0.775
and 0.894 during August break with both rain fall and relative humidity. However the relationship
was negative with both maximum and minimum temperatures. Suggestions are made on how to
manage both major weather types and poultry operation for efficient poultry farm development in
the tropics.
