Farming practices and genetic characterization of Nicobari pig, an indigenous pig germplasm of Nicobar group of islands, India.

The Nicobari pig, locally known as Ha-un, is an indigenous pig germplasm located only in the Nicobar group of islands, India. The present study documents the Nicobari pig-rearing practices of the tribal farmers and genetically characterizes them using 23 FAO-recommended microsatellite markers. The study was conducted over a period of 3 years (2010-2012) in Car Nicobar, India. A total of 225 farmers were surveyed (15 farmers per village of 15 villages). Information on herd statistics, husbandry practices, and constraints faced by the farmers in pig production were collected. The pigs were reared in a free-range system. Mean pig herd size per house hold was 8.9, and main feed for pigs was coconut and some indigenous feed materials such as pandanus, bread fruit, and Nicobari alu. The main constraints faced by the farmers were lack of feed after the tsunami, different disease conditions, piglet mortality, and predator attack. The Nicobari pigs were genotyped by 23 FAO-recommended microsatellite markers. The mean observed number of alleles for all 23 loci in Nicobari pigs was 6.96 ± 0.31. The mean observed and expected heterozygosities were 0.66 ± 0.02 and 0.75 ± 0.01, respectively. It was found that the genetic diversity of this pig breed was very high compared to Large White Yorkshire and other European pig breeds. This genetic characterization of the pig breed will be helpful in their conservation effort.