author(s)
S Agarwal, S Prasad, R Kumar, S Naskar, N Kumari, S Chandra and BK Agarwal

abstract
The present study was conducted to characterize the native chicken reared under backyard system in three districts of Chotanagpur plateau of Jharkhand. Data on phenotypic and body measurements were recorded of 540 adult chickens; 180 male and 360 females drawn from 270 households. The overall flock size differed significantly (P≤ 0.01) in the study area. In males, mixed plumage color in Ranchi and red plumage in Ramgarh and Bokaro were the dominant phenotypic traits. However, female chickens were characterized by brown plumage. The predominant shank colour was yellow. The color of ear lobe and comb were red and skin was white in all the birds. The predominant comb type was single followed by pea and rose. The body weight and shank length of birds of Ranchi were significantly higher (P≤ 0.05) than other two districts. The age at first egg lay, clutch size, laying cycles per year and annual egg production were significantly differed. The study revealed that most of the parameters studied showed similar results in Ramgarh and Bokaro but significantly higher in Ranchi. The present study has developed the baseline data of indigenous chickens for recognition as a distinct breed in future. However, molecular characterization must be taken to conserve the indigenous chicken population.