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A note on heritability estimates for growth traits in male and female Romanov sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

G. A. María
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln and US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908, USA
K. G. Boldman
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln and US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908, USA
L. D. van Vleck
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln and US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908, USA
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Abstract

A total of 1855 records were analysed using restricted maximum likelihood (REML) techniques to estimate heritabilities separately for males and females lambs on birth weight (BW), weaning weight (WW), 90-day weight (W90) and average daily gains birth to weaning (Cl) and weaning to 90 days (C2). An animal model including fixed effects of year × season, parity, litter size and rearing type; and random effects of direct genetic effect (h2D) and residual was applied. Estimates ofh2Dfor BWwere 048 (males) and 0·50 (females); for WW 0·35 (males) and 0·22 (females); for W90 0·21 (males) and 0·31 (females); for Cl 0·20 (males) and 0·25 (females); and for C2 0·18 (males) and 0·29 (females).

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1993

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