a) (i) identify specimens P and R [2 marks] Specimen P: Specimen R: (ii) State three reasons why the use of specimen P is not recommended in a brooder house...

(a)(i) Identification

• Specimen P: sawdust.
• Specimen R: a bird (grain-eating pest bird).

(a)(ii) Three reasons why specimen P (sawdust) is not recommended in a brooder house

1. It easily contaminates the chicks' feed and water.
2. It may enter the eyes of the chicks and cause blindness, or enter the nostrils and cause breathing difficulty.
3. Chicks tend to peck and feed on it and may contract disease, and it cakes up easily and loses its ability to absorb droppings.

(a)(iii) Two other materials that could be used in place of specimen P

• Rice husk.
• Wood shavings (also ground maize cobs or dry grass).

(a)(iv) Name of the product formed when poultry droppings mix with specimen P

Poultry manure (farmyard manure).

(a)(v) Four uses of the product in agricultural production

1. To improve soil fertility.
2. To improve soil structure by binding soil particles together.
3. For compost making.
4. For fertilisation of fish ponds.

(b) Three ways of controlling specimen R (bird) in crop production

1. Use of a scarecrow or bird scarer on the farm.
2. Use of a catapult, or drumming and noise-making to frighten the birds away.
3. Use of avicides.