Nutrient content of feedstuffs scavenged by local chickens kept by smallholder farmers in Lilongwe, Malawi

The physical and nutrient composition of crop and gizzard plus proventriculus (G+P) contents of the scavenging local chickens was assessed, to establish the daily feed resource for these chickens. A total of 56 chickens of both sexes were assessed in the wet and dry seasons in Mitundu Extension Planning Area, Lilongwe, Malawi. The chickens were between 15 and 20 weeks of age. Female chickens were those that had not yet started laying. The chickens were randomly caught while scavenging in the afternoon between 14:30 and 17:00 hours, were weighed and immediately slaughtered by cervical dislocation. These were de-feathered and eviscerated in the laboratory, and the crop and G+P were harvested and weighed. The contents were emptied, weighed, and physically identified. The contents were dried at 60 ˚C for 48 hours, before doing proximate analysis. Chicken parts were also weighed. Quantitative data were analysed using the general linear model of the analysis of variance through Minitab 17. Comparison was made between sexes and seasons. The results showed that body weights of adult male and female chickens in both seasons were not different (p > 0.05). In the wet season the body weight of male and female chickens was 1059.6 ± 274.6 g and 1061.5 ± 218.8 g, respectively. In the dry season the body weight of male and female chickens was 1295.8 ± 426.3 g and 1166.3 ± 293.0 g, respectively. The crop and G+P contents included grains, household food refuse, plant material, insects/worms, grit, and miscellaneous materials. Season and sex did not influence (p > 0.05) weight of crop or G+P, and types of feedstuffs in the crop and G+P contents were also the same between the two seasons and sexes, although quantities were different between the two seasons. The quantity of maize grain and household refuse was higher in the dry season, than in the wet season. The quantity of green material, on the other hand, was higher during the wet season than in the dry season. The energy content of the crop and G+P contents in male chickens was higher in the wet season (7.5 MJ/kg) than in the dry season (5.8 MJ/kg), while, in female chickens it was the same in both seasons (6.9 MJ/kg). The crude protein content of the crop and G+P contents was higher in the wet season than in the dry season, and, higher in female chickens than in male chickens. Protein content was 97 and 73 g/kg for male chickens in the wet and dry seasons, respectively, and 100 and 86 g/kg in the wet and the dry season, respectively, for female chickens. It is concluded that the nutrient content of the scavenging feed resources (SFR) was limiting in both seasons, except for some amino acids in the wet season, and that shortage in energy, protein or any mineral in the SFR would be area/location-specific depending on the quality and quantity of the SFR.<p></p>