Karakteristik fenotipik dan sistem produksi kerbau (Bubalus bubalis) sebagai dasar penyusunan program pemuliaan peternakan rakyat di Banten

Abstract

The Swamp buffalo in Banten is one of the Indonesian animal genetic resources. However until now, a sustainable breeding program for swamp buffaloes has not been fully drawn. This research work was conducted to collect basic information needed for the drawing up the sustainable breeding program. It was conducted on local buffaloes in Serang, Pandeglang and Lebak districts in order to investigate the demography, behavior and participation of farmers in future breeding programs. The research method used was the survey method with a purposive sampling. Primary data was obtained from direct observations and interviews based on a questionnaire. A descriptive analysis was used for the demographic characteristic variable using a total of 300 buffaloes from the three different areas mentioned before. An additional 448 individual morphometric secondary data was measured from other areas in Indonesia. The genetic distance was estimated using a discriminant analysis. Morphometrical measurement of the Pandeglang buffaloes were found much higher than Serang and Lebak buffaloes (P<0.05). A Canonical analysis showed that there were many similarities between Serang and Lebak buffaloes. Two dendrograms were drawn based on the genetic distances and showed a medium difference between Pandeglang and Serang or Lebak population. A lower difference of the genetic distance was found between Serang and Lebak population. The result indicated that the education level of most of the farmers were relatively low (elementary school graduates and lower). The rate of participation was moderate, motivation and general knowledge of the farmers in buffalo breeding were relatively low. It was concluded that a sustainable village buffalo breeding program should be based and determined by the socio-cultural aspects of the behavior of local farmers.

Keberadaan kerbau rawa di Provinsi Banten sedemikian rupa telah menyatu dengan kondisi sosial dan budaya masyarakat setempat. Perannya dalam kehidupan sehari-hari adalah sebagai ternak kerja untuk membajak sawah, sumber daging dan tabungan. Mengingat peran kerbau rawa bagi kehidupan peternak di Provinsi Banten sangat penting, maka diperlukan upaya-upaya peningkatan dan pelestarian kerbau yang berkelanjutan. Penelitian ini dilakukan untuk mengetahui keragaman fenotipe melalui analisis morfometrik, mempelajari pengetahuan, motivasi dan partisipasi peternak dalam kegiatan pemuliaan kerbau, dan menyusun pola pemuliaan kerbau pada peternakan rakyat di Banten. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah survey. Penentuan sampel berdasarkan purposive sampling sehingga penelitian ini dilakukan di Kabupaten Serang, Pandeglang dan Lebak. Materi penelitian yang digunakan adalah 300 ekor kebau rawa dewasa dan 60 orang responden peternak kerbau di Kabupaten Serang, Pandeglang serta Lebak Provinsi Banten. Data yang dihimpun merupakan data primer. Data sekunder terdiri atas 100 ekor kerbau rawa Aceh Besar, 99 ekor kerbau Hulu Sungai Selatan, 50 ekor kerbau Pleihari, 39 ekor kerbau Dompu, 40 ekor kerbau Hu’u, 40 ekor kerbau Kempo, 40 ekor kerbau Pajo, dan 40 ekor kerbau Woja. Data sekunder berasal dari data penelitian peneliti pada kerjasama kemitraan penelitian pertanian dengan perguruan tinggi (KKP3T) pada tahun 2007, digunakan pada penentuan jarak genetik antarpopulasi kerbau rawa Indonesia.