This study was carried out to determine the effects of Moringa oleifera leaf meal (MOLM) on the performance, nutrient digestibility and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens. Fresh lea

Raheem, K.A.*; Ekechukwu, E.O.; Nneka, N.V.S. and Ibiam, A.
ws is crucial and may determine the extent to which these organs are able to perform their physiological roles. In this study, 63 White Fulani (WF) and 21 Red Bororo (RB) breeds of cattle were used to study and compare the baseline dimensions of the ovary, oviduct uterine horns (right and left), and uterine body as well as the cervix in these two breeds of cattle. The samples were collected from a local abattoir (Ubakala, Abia State) and taken to the Theriogenology Laboratory of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, where the aforementioned organs were measured with the aid of weighing balance, thread, meter ruler and Vernier callipers. Parameters measured were weight and length of ovaries as well as lengths of oviduct, uterine bodies, uterine horns and cervix. The results showed that the mean weights of the right and left ovaries of 3.09 ± 0.25 and 3.51 ± 0.23 kg in the WF were significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of RB whose values were 2.67 ± 0.15 and 2.89 ± 0.35 cm respectively. On the contrary, there was no significant difference in the length of the ovary between the two breeds. The number of follicles with more than 4 mm in diameter range from 10 to 15 in both WF and RB. The lengths of the right and left oviducts in the WF (16.18 ± 0.76 and 17.86 ± 1.53 cm) were statistically similar (P>0.05) to that that of RB (14.83 ± 1.25 and 15.98 ± 1.62 cm). WF had right uterine horn that was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of RB whereas other uterine biometrics were similar in the two breeds. The length of the cervix of WF breed (6.74 ± 0.64) was statistically (P>0.05) similar to 6.00 ± 0.81 cm of RB. These data may be useful in further study related to the physiological function of individual structures measured in this study and specifically may find a practical application of determining the length of catheter used in artificial insemination. It is concluded that parameters of some segments of reproductive organs such as ovary and uterine horn differed significantly between WF and RB breeds of cattle, while other segments that included uterine body, oviduct and cervix were similar. Further studies with larger population size are suggested. Keywords: Cervix, ovary, oviduct, uterus, Red Bororo, White Fulani.