Examination of Some External Quality Traits of Goose, Duck and Turkey Eggs in Public Farms

The present study aimed at the determination of certain external quality traits of goose, duck and turkey eggs. A total of 440 eggs obtained from geese (n=117), ducks (n=260) and turkeys (n=63), which were raised by the local people of Konya province, constituted the material of the study. Each egg was weighed individually, and the length and width of the eggs were determined. Using these three measurements and mathematical equations, the external quality traits of the eggs were determined. For defining the shape of the eggs, both the shape indices and elongation values were utilised. Goose, duck and turkey egg shell traits determined, included egg shell weight (11.32 and 11.23 g; 5.69 and 5.71 g; 5.31 and 5.33 g), egg shell thickness (0.45 and 0.48 mm; 0.35 and 0.35 mm; 0.32 and 0.34 mm) and egg shell density (2.08 g/cm3; 2.06 g/cm3; 2.06 g/cm3), respectively. Furthermore, egg shell surface area and egg mass were calculated. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the mean and standard errors for these types of poultry eggs. The shape indices and elongation values detected for goose, duck and turkey eggs were 68.13±0.39% and 1.47±0.01, 71.76±0.19% and 1.40±0.00, and 72.53±0.32% and 1.38±0.01, respectively. In this study, the external quality traits of goose, duck and turkey eggs were calculated using mathematical formulae established for small poultry species on the basis of egg weight, egg length and egg width values