A study on effects of Portulaca oleracea (Purslane) plant on growth performance and some carcass traits of Japanese quail

Purslane herb is one of the richest plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids and there are different antioxidants and minerals in different parts of this plant. This experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of using portulaca oleracea plant on performance of Japanese quail. This experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design (CRD) with 180 of Japanese quails allocated to three treatments and four replicates (with 15 birds in each replicate). The period of the experiment was 42 days. The experimental treatments were: 1) control group without using Purslane plant, 2) control group + 1/5% of purslane plant, 3) control group  +3% of purslane plant. On day 42 after slaughter, carcass characteristics were measured. The birds under purslane plant treatment had higher relative weight for heart compared to the control group (P<0.05). The treatments had no effect on other carcass traits. The results indicated that the use of purslane plant had significantly effects on performance of Japanese quail. The highest amount of weight gain and the lowest feed conversion were observed in Purslane herb experimental groups (P<0.05).