The scabby guinea fowl initially attracted poultry farmers with an amazing appearance: the exotic bird looks so interesting that it was bred as a decoration of the yard. But over time, breeding these birds has become a profitable business, the ability to eat delicious meat and eggs.
Historical data
Africans have known this exotic bird since ancient times - it is a proud value and a local delicacy of the country. Aborigines learned how to cook it deliciously. By tradition, the family of Africans for rallying and unity should cook the bird for 1 hour on low heat in the presence of all relatives.
Residents of African lands usually know all the features of this bird. For the holidays, a guinea fowl is prepared by bandaging it with a special rope, for which a banana leaf is used. A bird decorated with fried eggs, pandanus leaves and peanuts is served. It is equally popular in Aboriginal countries to cook salads that contain meat or guinea fowl eggs.
Wild birds began to be domesticated in antiquity. Exotic forelock birds perfectly adapt to any conditions. Guinea fowls lay eggs with a tight shell.
Description of the breed: characteristics and appearance
A distinctive feature of the Chubata guinea fowl is a small crest, due to which the bird got its name. The forelock consists of curly black feathers that stand out clearly even from afar.
In guinea fowl, the body length varies between 45-56 cm, the small head is colored blue, the plumage is absent. There are white spots on the dark body. Males are much smaller than females. The maximum weight reaches one and a half kilograms. Life expectancy is 10 years.
Males predominate by some remarkable feature - a thick beak. In addition, males are much more vociferous than females - they make more intermittent sounds with some cracking.
Where does the bird live (what is the area of its distribution)?
The African bird does not like dense forests, therefore, prefers to settle in rarefied species, also lives in the savannah in the southern side of the Sahara.
Chubate guinea fowl slopes inhabit in flocks, where in one there can be 40-100 individuals. Guinea fowls constantly wander in search of food. These birds, due to the unique taste of meat, are hunted by the local population. Representatives are also found in many specialized nurseries.
The difference between females and males
Despite the fact that males and females of guinea fowls are outwardly similar to each other, they have significant differences. Guinea fowls are larger than caesars. Males have a larger beak, there are growths. In birds of both sexes there are long outgrowths under the beak (catkins), in males they are thicker.
Many people have noticed more than once that the males keep their head and tail in a raised state, behave proudly, they have a stately appearance. Females seem much more modest than the emperors.
Wild Food
"Crested" are not picky in their diet - they are quite good about the fruits, berries and seeds of plants. They also prefer to eat different invertebrates - insects, spiders, centipedes, small mollusks, etc.
Enemies guinea fowl in nature
Guinea fowl suffers from enemies in nature. She has to fear the attacks of various predators: carnivorous birds living on the continent of Africa. Also, feline large animals of the feline family - servals - often attack the bird. Often poachers hunt guinea fowl.
Breeding
The wild crested guinea fowl is a monogamous bird, forming a pair for a long time. In their habitats, the mating season falls on the rainy season. Mating games begin at males with obligatory gifts for females - they bring them something “tasty” to gain attention.
Guinea fowl equip nests on the ground and perfectly hide them in dense vegetation. From 6 to 10 pear-shaped eggs with a yellowish shell are laid in bird nests. Guinea fowl hatch eggs for 28 days, almost without getting up from the nest. The male is constantly nearby - he guards and protects future offspring.
Parents look after the hatched offspring together. Almost immediately, when guinea fowls are born, they everywhere follow the guinea fowl and guinea fowl, and after 12 days they begin to freely flutter and sometimes even fly up into tall bushes. When the birds turn 1 month old, their body is completely covered with feathers.
Domesticated spike guinea fowls become polygamous: in April, males mate with some females, while the main part remains unfertilized. Therefore, it is required to take into account that there are no more than 6 females per male, and the cesar must be several months older in age.
Birds mate on a long walk. In domestic guinea fowls, egg production lasts for six months. The main thing for the farmer is to pick up the eggs on time, otherwise the bird will stop hatching and begin to hatch them.
Is it possible to keep a bird in captivity?
Like ordinary chickens, crested guinea fowls can be kept in any room, only it must be light and dry. If the weather permits, they are released for a walk, and in the evening all the birds return to their house for perches. The birds reach puberty by 6-7 months, subject to certain maintenance requirements:
- maintaining the optimum humidity level - not more than 60%;
- daylight hours are 16 hours;
- the optimum temperature in the house is 14 degrees.
The litter is recommended to be made of sawdust, sand, peat or shavings. These birds are also kept in cages, which must meet certain requirements. It is desirable that the size of the cage be 180x45x45 cm. In it, containers are necessarily installed for collecting and eliminating bird droppings. The cell must be divided into four slots.
Drinking bowls, feeders and egg trays should be installed in the cage. Each division should count on one family of birds: four females and 1 male.
Content Features
Birds are not whimsical to the conditions of detention. Allowed to choose any room for guinea fowl. The main thing is that there is no moisture in it, and the sun's rays do not penetrate. African birds like walks, therefore it is recommended to equip the territory for walking, so that the birds could be plenty in the fresh air.
In the house, with intensive egg laying, the temperature should be around +14 degrees. The duration of daylight, if necessary, is increased to 16 hours. Humidity should be low.
Farmers note that in the summer, guinea fowls begin to hide eggs and try to hatch them. This should not be allowed, but if you want to increase the number of birds, it is better to use an incubator. In guinea fowls, egg laying lasts about 6 months, sometimes longer.
It makes no sense to leave the birds in the second year, because their productivity is significantly reduced. For one season, a laying hen gives about 100-150 eggs. If the spongy guinea fowl stops rushing, it is advisable to get rid of it, as well as five-month-old males, when they are superfluous in the pack.
Read more about the care and maintenance of guinea fowls here.
Home feeding
Under natural conditions, spike guinea fowl consume insects, foliage, plant seeds, stems and greens of various vegetation. Often in the diet of guinea fowl there is food of animal origin, usually these are small mice.
Guinea fowl prefer to settle near ponds - this bird is difficult for a long time to be without water. But if moisture is not enough, the bird's body is able to absorb it from the consumed feed.
At home, it is allowed to feed the bird with a variety of feeds, including table waste, potatoes, carrots, chopped grass. In the early days it is advisable to feed chickens with fresh cottage cheese, bran and boiled chicken eggs. It is equally useful to include whey and milk in the diet.
Young growth must be fed at least 8 times a day. When birds become adults, it is enough to feed them 4 times a day. Guinea fowl are distinguished by good appetite, due to the rapid metabolism.
During the laying period, laying hens must additionally receive protein-rich feeds. In the summer, they can find their own food among the bushes in the meadows, where there are a lot of different greens and fruits. The most nutritious are dandelions, burdock. On agricultural fields, birds like picking various weeds and seeds. Often, if a guinea fowl eats rich feed during the range, it refuses to eat in the evening.
In winter, it is recommended to replace green feed with hay dust and dry grass. Also, the poultry breeder should ensure that birds have constant access to clean water. More information on the proper feeding of guinea fowls can be found here.
Breeding
Usually breeding of scruffy guinea fowl at home does not provide for special difficulties. First of all, the poultry breeder needs to know some subtleties:
- fertilization of females occurs in the spring, or rather April;
- as an incubation material, eggs laid in May are selected;
- chicks appear 4 weeks after hatching, this is a week longer than that of chickens.
Guinea fowls are rarely very good hens, it’s unusual for them to finish the job, so they can leave the eggs hatching halfway. Therefore, it is optimal to use an incubator for hatching. Many farmers have experienced in their experience that this gives a greater chance of increasing the number of guinea fowl. Read about incubation of guinea fowls here.
You can read more about breeding guinea fowls here.
Care for guinea fowls
Guinea fowl chicks after hatching may well be independent. They only need a few hours to recover. The peculiarity of daily allowances is that they are ill little.
Their diet should contain greens, garlic, chopped nettles, green onions. It is important to supply babies with vitamin supplements during this period. Chicks are fed at least six times a day.
Up to two weeks young animals are kept behind a separate fence, then it is permissible to let the birds out for a walk. Once free, guinea fowls can quite far away from home, but in the evening they will definitely return.
It is undesirable to plant young birds with adult guinea fowls, since there they will certainly begin to offend. Recognizing young animals as adult birds will take a lot of time.
The benefits to humans
Guinea fowl is a bird useful to humans, it is customary to use it on the farm. Even in ancient times, when Ancient Greece existed, it was customary to use guinea fowl to help people. Birds exterminated insects, fed on almost any waste. The same thing is happening today.
Guinea fowl is considered unpretentious bird, the meat of which is less greasy than that of chickens. Also, breeding birds does not require cash costs and does not cause any particular difficulties, even if you start your own business for raising birds in rural areas. These animals have many advantages. Besides the fact that the birds look very attractive, they supply their owner with fresh, dietary meat and healthy egg products.
Spongy Guinea Fowl - a useful bird that lives in African forests. She is considered a close relative of ordinary chickens. Guinea fowl is used for breeding, because it is of undeniable benefit to humans. Proper maintenance and care will ensure good health for the birds.
Posted by
3
Ukraine. City: Kryvyi Rih
Publications: 110 Comments: 0