P.A. (Pieter) Oliehoek: “Optimised breeding can prevent extinction of endangered animals”

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14 Apr 2009 13:30
Unit: Wageningen University
Location: Aula, building 362, Gen. Foulkesweg 1, Wageningen
Organisation: Wageningen University
Promotor: prof.dr.ir. J.A.M. van Arendonk (Animal Breeding and Genetics)
Co Promotor: Dr.ir. P. Bijma

 Due to increasing world population many unique animals species will disappear from the wild. These species will only survive in captivity, predominantly in zoos. The capacity of zoos, however is also limmited. It is essential for small populations to preserve the variation within a population, despite the low numbers of animals. This variation is needed for minimalisation of inbreeding and future adaptation of a population. By breeding according to a 'optimal contributions', much of the variation can be saved. Such an optimal breeding method is sensitive to errors in information about animals that are unavoidable in practise, like missing pedigree information. This thesis investigated the consequences for optimal breeding methods in practise. It shows that when errors are taken into account, optimal breeding methods could still double the amount of variation in populations. This is crucial for conservation of wild species as well as rare breeds.
Title thesis: “Genetic Conservation of Endangered Animal Populations”
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