Poultry genetic resources in the countries of Eastern Europe – history and current state

Native poultry breeds of East-European countries suffered considerable losses during the Second World War and as a result of the ''socialization'' of agriculture. Currently, steps are being taken to protect against extinction of all that remains. Most advanced in the programme of preservation of the native breeds of chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese and other domestic and game birds are: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia & Ukraine. The authors are aware of the limited range of the presented material but a serious drawback has been the lack of information available from Albania, Bulgaria, Byelarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and former Yugoslavia. The studies carried out so far suggest that in the countries of Eastern Europe there is awareness of the necessity to maintain for future generations established native breeds of poultry not only as genetic resources indispensable for further breeding activities, but also as live evidence of the great achievements of many generations of past breeders. The present survey has allowed us to summarize information on 56 indigenous breeds, varieties and strains of chickens, 13 of turkeys, four of Japanese quail, three of guinea fowl, nine of ducks and 36 of geese preserved in East-European countries as poultry genetic resources. The most impressive poultry breed collection is in Russia, with 50 native breeds (24 of chickens, seven of turkeys, one of Japanese quail, three of guinea fowl, four of ducks and 11 of geese). Ukraine and Poland are also remarkable for the large poultry genetic resources numbering respectively 20 (eight of chickens, one of turkeys, four of ducks and seven of geese) and 18 (seven of chickens, two of Japanese quail and nine of geese) native breeds, varieties and strains.