A study was conducted for eight weeks to determine the effect of different light sources on the production performance of egg laying birds. For this purpose, 384 single comb White Leghorn layers 40-weeks of age, in their first laying cycle, were obtained from the Poultry Research Centre, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan. The layers were randomly divided into 12 basic experimental units comprising 32 laying hens each, to be designated as replicate. These 12 replicates were further divided into three treatment groups viz; A (fluorescent), B (compact fluorescent), and C (incandescent), each comprising 128 layers. Production performance of birds under different treatments was compared in terms of body weight, feed consumption, egg production, feed conversion ratio, mortality and economics. Hen-day egg production (%) was significantly higher (P<0.05) in groups B and C compared to group A. Analysis of data on feed conversion ratio showed that layers in group A and B were significantly less efficient in feed conversion compared to those of group C; difference between the former two groups was non-significant. However, light sources showed non-significant effect on feed consumption, body weight and mortality of the birds. Birds of group B fetched more profit than those of groups A and C.

Key words: Light source, Egg production, Feed conversion ratio, Body weight, Mortality, Economics