Morphobiometric characterisation of donkey resources (Equus asinus) in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon

Abstract

This study, conducted from April to October 2024 in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon, aimed to contribute to a better understanding of the phenotypic diversity of donkeys in Cameroon. More specifically, it sought to define the morphometric characteristics and biometric body indices of donkeys in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon in order to identify genetic variability and deduce their phenotypic structure and classification.  A sample of 300 adult donkeys, including 139 females and 161 males, was observed in four locations. Nine body measurements were taken, namely chest circumference (CC), height at the withers (HW), neck length (NL), left ear length (LEL), right ear length (REL), body length (BoL), back height (BH), back length (BL) and head length (HL) were collected. In addition to these measurements, coat color and geographical location were also noted. The results show that, in terms of phaneroptic characteristics, gray coats are dominant (71.33%) and black coats with a uniform cape are the least common (11.33%). The average values (in cm) of the measurements are respectively 107.99±7.52, 98.68± 4.33, 30.59± 2.87, 25.92 ± 1.41, 25.99 ± 1.67, 104.32 ± 7.12, 102.75 ± 7.75, 68.72 ± 5.53, 44.72 ± 2.72. These measurements were used to determine four body indices often used in literature. The body profile index (BPI = 0.95 ±0.07) enabled donkeys from the northern and far northern regions of Cameroon to be classified as slender, with a chest development index (CDI = 1.086 ±0.06) indicating their suitability for work. The hierarchical ascending classification (HAC) identified three phenotypic groups that differ in particular in terms of their size and chest circumference.