Aim.

To conduct a visual characterization of the Cuban fighting cocks (GLCC)..

Materials and

methods: A total of 1514 adult birds (1227 females and 287 males) belonging to 158 farmers from the western, central, and eastern regions of Cuba were observed, according to five qualitative variables: plumage coloration, crest type, eye color, beak color, and tarsus color. The occurrence frequencies were determined for each variable using FREQ from SPSS 25®. The Chi Square test was used to evaluate the effect of sex on the eye color, crest type, and tarsus color based on the exact method and Bonferroni correction for pair comparison proportions; the binomial test method was used for the crest type.

Results and discussion:

The proportion of animals with a simple crest was higher (83.12%), with a predominant indigo color (54.28%); the birds with red eyes, yellow tarsus, and yellow-brownish bills showed the highest percentages.

Conclusions:

The dark plumage colors were predominant as they were associated with each breeder’s preference. The Cuban fighting rooster has a defined morphological pattern which is similar to the Spanish fighting breeds that originated it.