Biodiversity of Donkeys in the Highlands of Northwest Cameroon

The study was conducted from September to December 2014 in the highlands of Northwest Cameroon. The overall objective was to contribute to a better understanding of donkey diversity with a view to its conservation and genetic improvement, and more specifically: to evaluate morphological characteristics; to assess body measurements of donkeys; to establish, based on body measurements, equations for predicting the live weight of donkeys; to estimate biometric indices of donkeys based on body measurements and to analyze genetic variability, and to establish the genetic structure and relationships among donkey populations. To this end, a sample of 174 adult donkeys (96 males and 78 females) was observed in 7 localities and 3 markets within the study area. The results show that there is significant phenotypic variability among donkeys in the highlands of northwestern Cameroon. In terms of coat color, gray is dominant (86.2%) and burnt bay is less common (0.5%). Body measurements yielded varied values.