author(s)
Madiha Qureshi, AH Qadri and GS Gachal

abstract
Morphological study of various varieties of Aseel chicken breed was conducted from 14^th April 2017 to 23 September 2017. This study was designed to explore the morphological variation of various varieties of Aseel breed with morphological characters and their different body parameters. A total number of 67 samples of 8 varieties of Aseel breed (Sindhi=18, Black=11, Mottled=9, Lakha=7, Jawa=7, Bihangam=6, Beard Kulang=5, Wilaete clation Aseel=4) were collected from different localities of district Hyderabad. It was observed that the prevalence of Sindhi Aseel (26.86%) was highest in district Hyderabad followed by Black Aseel (16.41%), Mottled Aseel (13.43%), Lakha Aseel (10.44%), Jawa Aseel ( 10.44%), Bihangam Aseel (8.95%), Beard Kulang Aseel (7.46%) respectively. The minimum prevalence was found for Wilaete clation Aseel (5.97%).In this study, great morphogical diversity were observed with respect to beak color, absence or presence of wattles, eye color, plumage color, shank color and comb type, only earlobe color were similar in all varieties. Great variation was also observed with respect to body parameters in both males and female of studied varieties and this study will provide a baseline information for future research in the area.