engleski

Seasonal impact on fungal contamination of poultry litter

In this study, fungal contamination of poultry litter was compared between different seasons. The study was conducted in a broiler house under commercial production conditions during 5-week production cycle in warm (July-August) and cold (December-January) periods of the year. During each cycle, there were 18, 000 broilers of Ross hybrid kept in the house on deep litter containing chopped straw and sawdust, with stocking density up to 33 kg/m2. Concentration and composition of fungi were investigated weekly, along with litter temperature, moisture and pH. Study results revealed the litter concentration of fungi to have significantly increased (P<0.05) with weeks of fattening period in both seasons, with no significant between-season difference in the mean concentrations. Season had no significant effect on the mean yeast concentration, which showed highest concentration in both seasons. Of the moulds identified, there was no significant seasonal difference in the mean concentration of Cladosporium sp., Fusarium sp. and Rhizopus sp. ; yet, the litter concentration of Aspergillus sp. was significantly higher in warm season, and that of Mucor sp. and Penicillium sp. in cold season (P<0.001 all). Fungal concentration showed high positive correlation with litter temperature, moisture and pH (P<0.05 all). The results obtained suggested seasonal impact on fungal composition of poultry litter. Moreover, these results can prove useful on assessing the potential adverse health effect of fungi on both animals and humans working in poultry farming.

poultry ; fungi ; litter ; season

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