Termites are commonly used by smallholder farmers in West Africa to feed their poultry. A survey was carried out among poultry farmers in Burkina Faso to gather knowledge on the traditional methods used to obtain termites for poultry feed, to assess which termite genera are collected with which techniques and evaluate prospects for optimising and improving the collection and trapping methods. Data were collected among 1100 poultry farmers in eight regions of Burkina Faso on the harvesting techniques, the termite species and their local names as well as on the use of residues. After the interviews, termite samples were collected with the farmers and identified in the laboratory. At least five termite species were found. Species of the genera Odontotermes, Trinervitermes and Macrotermes are commonly given to chickens and guinea fowls whereas a Cubitermes species is sometimes used to feed guinea fowls. Two categories of methods are used to obtain termites, the direct collection by breaking termite mounds and the trapping of termites in containers filled with organic matters. The harvesting method varies with the termite genus, the region and the season. Different techniques with various types of containers and organic matters are used in the country and these techniques should be tested and compared to recommend the most efficient ones. The enhancement of termite trapping methods and their integration in poultry feed have the potential to significantly improve traditional poultry farming in Burkina Faso.

Termites are important ecosystem engineers. Yet they are often difficult to identify due to the lack of reliable species-specific morphological traits for many species, which hampers ecological research. Recently, termitologists working with West African termites (West African Termite Taxonomy Initiative) convened for a workshop with the aim of beginning to address this problem. Repeated determination of the same termite samples by the most renowned taxonomists for West African termites identified the huge scale of the problem, as less than 10% of all species could be unambiguously determined to the species level. Intensive discussions and comparisons increased the identification success to around 25% at the end of the workshop. Yet many groups remained problematic and molecular markers and barcoding techniques combined with species delimitation approaches will be needed to help resolve these existing taxonomic problems. Based on the outcome of this workshop, we propose concerted initiatives to address termite taxonomy on a global scale. We are convinced that dedicated workshops on regional taxonomy that follow a similar structured approach, with repeated determination of the same sample, will help overcome the difficulties that termite taxonomy faces. This initiative can also serve as a blueprint for other taxonomical groups that are difficult to identify.

The purpose of this study, carried out in eight regions in Burkina Faso, West Africa, was to assess the use and knowledge of termites in poultry nutrition in Burkina Faso and to analyse the factors influencing this use. Household surveys were conducted to collect data on the socio-demographic characteristics of poultry farmers and the use of termites in poultry feed. These surveys involved 1,100 farmers in 32 villages. Poultry farmers mostly raise chicken and guinea fowls and these two species are also those that receive termites as supplementary feed. 78% of the surveyed farmers use termites to feed their poultry, but the rate strongly varied among regions and provinces. Several reasons were given for not using termites, the most common being the unavailability of termites followed by the lack of time and not being aware of the technique. Farmers were aware of termite species they consider as toxic in feeding chicks. Understanding the link between the use and availability of termites in poultry nutrition in West Africa is an important step towards the improvement of poultry production.

Une étude a été réalisée à l'ouest du Burkina Faso afin de déterminer les facteurs qui influencent l'oviposition naturelle de la mouche domestique (Musca domestica L.). L'objectif est d'améliorer la production de masse des larves de mouches pour l'élevage de la volaille au Burkina Faso. Méthodologie et Résultats : L'influence de l'humidité, de la quantité du substrat (fiente de poules pondeuses) et de trois récipients de surfaces variables sur la production des asticots a été déterminée. L'effet des saisons a été également évalué durant quatre périodes de l'année (juillet, octobre, janvier et avril). Les résultats indiquent une variation très significative de la biomasse fraîche larvaire variant de 604,9 g (4 kg + 7 l) à 5,5 g (4 kg + 10 l). Il ressort également que plus la surface d'oviposition est grande, plus la biomasse larvaire produite est importante (127,5 g pour 0,07 m 2 contre 257,2 g pour 0,11 m 2). La production des larves a été maximale en juillet (239 g) et faible en avril (86,06 g). Conclusion et application des résultats: L'étude montre que, lors de la production des asticots, une humidité insuffisante et un excès d'eau peuvent constituer des facteurs limitants à la production de masse. De plus, l'augmentation de la quantité du substrat par récipient n'implique pas nécessairement une augmentation de rendement, mais qu'une quantité optimale de substrat doit être trouvée en fonction des dimensions de l'ouverture du récipient utilisé. La saison des pluies est plus favorable pour une bonne production larvaire que les saisons sèches et de grande chaleur. Ces résultats permettent le développement d'une méthode durable de production de masse des asticots facilement applicable par des aviculteurs s'ils prennent en compte l'effet limitant des facteurs étudiés. En saison sèche, il est possible d'appliquer une double fermeture du substrat pour réduire les pertes d'eau par évaporation. En période froide, cet ajustement de la fermeture peut créer une condition adéquate de température permettant une éclosion des oeufs et un développement plus rapide des larves. Mots-clés : Asticots, Burkina Faso, Musca domestica (L.), production de masse, volaille Production of Musca domestica L. larvae (Diptera: Muscidae) for poultry nutrition in Burkina Faso: Analysis of determining factors in natural oviposition ABSTRACT Objective: A study was conducted in western Burkina Faso in order to assess the factors that influence the natural oviposition of the house fly (Musca domestica). The objective was to improve the mass production of fly larvae for poultry farming in Burkina Faso. Methodology and Results: The influence of moisture, the amount of substrate (poultry manure) and three containers with varying surfaces on larvae production were determined. The effect of season were also evaluated during four periods of the year (July, October, January and April). The results indicate a significant difference among treatments, with a fresh larval biomass varying from 604.9 g (4 kg + 7 l) to 5.5 g (4 kg + 10 l). It also appeared that ...

This study aimed to promote the use of termites as feed in traditional poultry farming by developing sustainable and inexpensive termite trapping techniques. Various tests were carried out in Burkina Faso to improve the traditional technique of trapping termites of the genus Macrotermes using a reversed container filled with organic matters. We studied the effect of containers’ types, substrates, habitats, harvesting times, duration of trap deposition, and season on the quantity of termites trapped. Calabashes and terra cotta pots trapped more termites than iron boxes, but calabashes were quickly destroyed by termites. The quantity of termites harvested increased proportionally with the volume of the pot and was higher in a cultivated habitat than in a forest, despite the higher number of termite mounds in the forest. The quantity of termites harvested was lowest in the cold-dry season and highest during the rainy season, however, sizeable amounts of termites were collected throughout the year. Among six substrates and mixtures of substrates tested, maize cobs trapped the highest number of termites and cow dung the lowest. The best time of harvest varied among seasons and, if substrates are abundant, it is more efficient to empty the containers on a daily basis.