Growth rate and feed efficiency of White Leghorn day-old chicks fed 28 soybean meals of various nitrogen solubility index (NSI=% of water soluble nitrogen in total nitrogen) as a main source of dietary protein were studied in 4 experiments to make certain the usefulness of NSI as an index of nutritive value of soybean meal treated at various conditions.
Highly significant negative correlation was observed between chick's performance and NSI of soybean meals prepared from the same raw material at the same time on different condition. However, it was confirmed that NSI of soybean meal changed after the prepation of the meal. Actually no periodical change was observed in moisture and total nitrogen content of the meal, the change in NSI was certainly due to the change in water soluble nitrogen of the meal. Little periodical change was observed in trypsin inhibitor activity of the meal and the change in urease activity was inconsistent.
Furthermore, the direction of the periodical change in NSI seemed to differ in soybean meals prepared by different procceures. In Expt. 506, NSI of soybean meals treated in high temperature without moisture, increased after the preparation. On the other hand, NSI of soybean meals treated with vapour in Expt. 610, decreased significantly within 2 months after the preparation.
Therefore, as an index of nutritive value of soybean meal, in general, prepared from various raw materials with different procedures at different time, NSI only serves as very rough one. From the data obtained in these experiments, nutritive value of soybean meal with NSI of less than 33% may be assumed to be normal but final decision on nutritive value should be made based on other data such as chick's performance.

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Two handred and fifty White Cornish pullets and 225 White Plymouth Rock pullets hatched in April or May, 1955, were reared from 10 to 49 weeks of age in 3 poultry experiment stations on either medium-energy control diet or low-energy, high fibre diet, on either full-feeding or restricted program. The collaborative experiments were planned based on factorial design with 3 factors, i.e. differences in feeding program, in breed and in environmental and other condition among the experiment stations.
In 2 of the 3 experiment stations, the pullets of each breeds were grouped into 5 lots at 10 weeks of age, while in the third station at 24 weeks of age. Control grower diet containing 16% of crude protein and 66% of total digestible nutrients (TDN) (approximately corresponding to 888 kcal of productive energy (PE) per pound) were full fed to Lot 1 and to Lot 4 on restricted basis. High fibre grower diet containing 14% of crude protein and 56% of TDN (corresponding to 730 kcal of PE/lb.) was full fed to Lot 2 and to Lot 5 on restricted basis. To Lot 3, anotherhigh fibre diet containing 16% of protein and 56% of TDN was fed ad libitum. The pullets on restricted program were full fed for 6 days and kept without feed on the last day ofthe week. At 24 weeks of age, the pullets fed the control grower diet were switched to the control layer diet containing 18% of crude protein and fortified with calcium. The pullets fed the high fibre grower of 14% of crude protein were switched to the high fibre layer diet containing the same level of protein to and higher level of calcium than the grower diet. The pullets in Lot 3 were fed the high fibre layer diet containing 18% of protein and fortified with calcium. All the layer diets contained the same level of energy to that in the corresponding grower diet.
Feed intake of the pullets on the high fibre grower was 16% more but their growth rate was 8% lower than those on the control diet. Sexual maturity measured as 50% production was delayed for 22 days by feeding the high fibre grower. However, performance in laying period, i.e. egg production, number of hatchable eggs per lot and mortality, was little influenced by high fibre grower feeding, although feed intake of the pullets was 9% more and 44 weeks body weight 6% less than those on the control diet. Hatchability of eggs on the high fibre diet was slightly (4%) higher than that of those on the control diet, although the difference was not significant statistically.
Restricted feeding of the control diet, skipping a day in a week, showed little effect on growth rate, feed intake in both growing and laying stages, egg production, number of hatchale eggs and hatchability, although it delayed sexual maturity for 10 days. 44 weeks body weight was 4% and mortality was 19% less than those on the full feeding program.
It was found that either of the programs, high fibre diet feeding or skip-a-day in a week, giving slight influence on the performance of the breeding hen, was not too efficient for the enhancement of productivity. However, the combination of the 2 programs, skipping a day in a week on high fibre diet, showed deleterious effect on the performance, lowering significantly the egg production. The pullets on the restricted feeding program seemed to counteract the ill effect of restriction by increasing the over-all feed intake, but with the combination of mechanical restriction of the high fibre diet, the pullets could not counteract completely.

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Four experiments were carried out to study the effect of environmental temperature and dietary energy and protein levels on the growth rate, feed intake and feed efficiency (gain/feed) of broiler-type chicks with 3 air-conditioned chick rooms constructed in this Institute.
Environmental temperature of the first room was always kept constant at 19±1°C. throughout all the experiments. That of the second room, of which temperature was adjustable from 20 to 35°C., was kept constant at 35, 27, 31 and 23±1°C., in Expts. 602, 611, 702 and 706, respectively. That of the third room, of which temperature was adjustable from 5 to 20°C., was kept constant at 5, 11, 7 and 15±1°C., respectively. Therefore, with the data in the first room kept at 19°C., 4 experiments were carried out at 9 different environmental temperatures in total.
In each of the rooms, a two-deck battary with 8 cages per deck were placed and 44-week-old chicks were reared in each cage. Cross bredchicks of White Cornish male and White Plymouth Rock female were reared in an ellectrically-heated battary brooder until 4 weeks of age, weighed and grouped into 48 lots of 4 males or 4 females each in Expt. 602, or into 24 lots of 2 males and 2 females each in three other experiments. Then, the chicks were moved to the cage in each of the rooms, of which temperature was adjusted already as mentioned above. Each lot of the chicks was fed one of 4 experimental diets, containing one of the combinations of 2 levels of energy, i.e. 73 and 83% of total digestible nutrients, and of 2 levels of protein, 16 and 20%. Total digestible nutrients was used to indicate dietary energy level. Expt. 602 was designed as 3×2⁴ factorial experiment with 5 factors, i.e. temperature, dietary energy and protein levels, sex and deck. Difference in the performance of the chicks on upper and lower deck in a battary was considered as a factor, to check the environmental condition in the rooms. Other three experiments were designed as 3×2³ factorial experiment, omitting sex factor by taking average of male and female. This omission of sexfactor was reasonable since no two-factor interactions between sex and other factors was observed statistically significant in Expt. 602.
Under the experimental conditions, the following conclusions induced are presented briefly.
1) Dietary levels of energy and protein and environmental temperature had sharp influence on the performance of the chicks. Following Equations 2 and 4 were found suitable to describe the relationship,
Y₁=-43.14+4.264E+6.685P+0.01877(T-22.5)³ ……(2)
Y₂=193.13+7.541E+5.184P-0.7109(T-17.9)² ……(4)
where, Y₁: feed efficiency (g/kg), Y₂; body weight gain for 4 weeks (g), E: dietary level of total digestible nutrients (%), P: dietary proein level (%) and T; environmental. temperature (°C).
Under the temperature at 15°C. or higher, feed intake decreased linearly with the increase in environmental temperature.
2) Since none of the two-factor interactions between temperature and other factors was significant statistically, the responses of males and females on the diet of various energy and protein levels to the change in environmental temperature were supposed to be parallel. These statistical findings on interactions will give sound base to the Equations 2 and 4, in which the response of the chicks was regarded only the main effect of 3 factors. In these equations, difference between males and females in the performance was cancelled out by taking average of males and females as Y₁ or Y₂.
3) Partially differenciating the Equations 2 and 4, the estimates can be obtained for the change in chick's performance corresponding to the unit change in each factor, E, P, and T.

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Two experiments were conducted to investigate protein and energy requirements of hybrid laying hen.
In experiment 1, four kinds of diets, which contained either levels of 13 or 18% of crude protein (CP) and of 60 or 68% total digestible nutrients (TDN), were used and compared with 76 strain crossbred pullets of White Leghorn (WL) and 128 hybrid of WL×Barred Plymouth Rock (BP) on the laying performance.
In experiment 2, CP-TDN levels in experimental diets were 18-66, 18-63, 15-66, 15-63, 15-60%. These dietary protein and TDN levels were calculated based on MORIMOTO'S Table.
A total of 150 hybrid (WL×BP) used in Experiment 2 were obtained from the same stock in Experiment 1. All groups were fed ad lib during experimental period and housed at individual laying cage.

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It was reported previously by authors that artificial insemination was succeeded in copper pheasants. In this paper, data were collected from successing experiments performed during 5 years period (1963-1967), using 62 birds (_??_14, _??_48), on their egg laying, fertility and hatchability, sex-ratio in chicks and their growth.
The results obtained were as follows:
1. The mean number of eggs laying and the laying periods were 19.8 (5-40) eggs and 55. 7 (10-97) days respectively, and also considerable individual differences were observed among them. The peak production of eggs was considered to be from the middle of April to that of May, and also high fecundity was observed in 3 or 4 ages than the other age.
2. The fertility and the hatchability (to fertilized eggs) in copper pheasants by using artificial insemination were 84.3% and 84.0% respectively.
3. The semen was collected from the beginning of March to that of June, and also more volume of semen was collected from the middle of March to that of April. The mean volume of semen was 0.025 (0.005-0.1)ml, and 3 or 4 ages of birds were observed to be the adequate age to collect the semen.
4. From these results, authors concluded that the breeding ages in copper pheasants were considered to be 3 or 4 ages, and the synchronization of the breeding season between sexes might be necessary to get the better results, for in males the breeding season was one month earlier than that of females.
5. Generally speaking, female chicks were hatched more than males, and this tendency was clear in the case of mating of parents in the high fertilities. Some relation might be exsisted between the ranking of egg laying and the sex-ratio.
6. On the growth of chicks, the differences were observed between sexes from 4 weeks of age.

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