Improvement of Reproductive Traits and Body Measurements of Turkeys

SELECTION programs for the improvement of turkeys have placed relatively heavy emphasis on increased body weight and fleshing characteristics. This objective is understandable since turkeys are raised entirely for meat. With this trend toward heavy, broad breasted birds the accompanying changes in reproductive ability, if not negative, have been minimal increases. Although the interests of growers and hatching egg producers may be somewhat different, their interests so overlap that the genetic-economic value of turkeys is a function of the various characters which affect their different enterprises. The breeder, in this case, is interested in developing superior meat birds with a high reproductive rate. This may be desirable economically, but the genetic relationship between traits may prevent attaining the maximum improvement that would be possible if each character were independent of other characters. The problem becomes one of placing the correct relative emphasis on different characters so as to maximize the …