Effects of Climate on Chicken Production in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria

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.