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ARS Home » Plains Area » Clay Center, Nebraska » U.S. Meat Animal Research Center » Genetics and Animal Breeding » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #110418
Title: GENETIC PARAMETER ESTIMATES FOR PROLIFICACY, GROWTH AND FLEECE CHARACTERISTICS OF TARGHEE SHEEP

Author
item HANFORD, K. - UNIV. OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN
item Snowder, Gary
item Van Vleck, Lloyd

Submitted to: Journal of Animal Science Supplement
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/30/2000
Publication Date: 9/1/2000
Citation: Hanford, K.J., Snowder, G.D., Van Vleck, L.D. 2000. Genetic parameter estimates for prolificacy, growth and fleece characteristics of Targhee sheep [abstract]. Journal of Animal Science 78(Suppl. 1):70.

Interpretive Summary: No interpretive summary is required.

Technical Abstract: Heritabilities and genetic correlations for prolificacy, growth and fleece traits were estimated from Targhee data collected from 1950 to 1998. Number of records ranged from 33,978 to 38,625, 32,715 to 33,994, 3,341 to 36,807 for prolificacy, growth and fleece traits. Direct heritability estimates from single trait animal model analyses using REML were .10 for number lambs born (NB), .07 for number lambs weaned (NW), .10 for litter weight at weaning (LW), .25 for birth weight (BW), .22 for 120 d weight (WW), .41 for fleece grade (FG), .54 for fleece weight (FW) and .65 for staple length (SL). Maternal heritability estimates were .20 for BW and .11 for WW. Estimates of genetic correlations among prolificacy traits were positive (.77 for NB-NW, .72 for NB-LW, .94 for NW-LW). Between BW and WW both the direct and maternal genetic correlations were positive (.52 for direct and .35 for maternal). FG was negatively correlated with both FW (-.47) and SL (-.69), and FW was positively correlated with SL (.54). Estimates of genetic correlations were small between the prolificacy and growth traits, except for the correlation between LW and WW, which was moderately correlated (.00, .00, .18, .20, .15, .38 for NB-BW, NW-BW, LW- BW, NB-WW, NW-WW and LW-WW). Estimates of genetic correlations were small between fleece characteristics and prolificacy traits: for FW (-.19, -.19, .04), for FG (.09, .11, .00) and for SL (-.14, .05, .09) with NB, NW and LW, respectively. Growth traits were positively correlated with FW and SL (.24, .24, .10, .08 for BW-FW, WW-FW, BW-SL and WW-SL), and negatively correlated with FG (-.06, -.05 for BW and WW).