Congruence between selection on breeding values and farmers' selection criteria in sheep breeding under conventional nucleus breeding schemes

Designing breeding schemes suitable for smallholder livestock production systems in developing regions has hitherto been a challenge. The suggested schemes either do not address farmers' breeding goals (centralized station-based nucleus schemes) or yield slow genetic progress (village-based schemes). A new breeding scheme that integrates the merits of previously suggested schemes has been designed for Menz sheep improvement in Ethiopia. It involves selection based on breeding values in nucleus flocks to produce elite rams, a one-time only provision of improved rams to villagers and a follow-up village-based selection to sustain genetic progress in village flocks. Here, we assessed whether conventional selection of breeding rams based on breeding values for production traits, which is the practice in station-based nucleus flocks, meets farmers' breeding objectives. We also elicited determinants of farmers' ram choice. Low but significant correlations were found between rankings of rams based on farmers' selection criteria, estimated breeding values (EBV) and body weight (BW). Appearance traits (such as color and horn) and meat production traits (BW and linear size traits) significantly determined farmers' breeding ram choice. The results imply that conventional selection criteria based solely on EBV for production traits do not address farmers' trait preferences fully, but only partially. Thus, a two-stage selection procedure involving selection on breeding values in nucleus centers followed by farmers' selection among top- ranking candidate rams is recommended. This approach accommodates farmers' preferences and speeds up genetic progress in village-based selection. The Menz sheep scheme could be applied elsewhere with similar situations to transform conventional station-based nucleus breeding activities into participatory breeding programs.     

Fine Root Morphology,Biochemistry and Litter Quality Indices of Fast- and Slow-growing Woody Species in Ethiopian Highland Forest

Fine root turnover of trees is a major C input to soil. However, the quality of litter input is influenced by root morphological traits and tissue chemical composition. In this study, fine roots of ten tropical woody species were collected from an Afromontane forest in the northern highlands of Ethiopia. The fine roots were analysed for root morphological traits and tissue chemistry measured as proxy carbon fractionations. Based on stem increment, the 10 species were divided into faster- and slower-growing species. Faster-growing species exhibited higher specific root length (1362 cm g^?1) than slower-growing species (923 cm g^?1). Similarly specific root area was higher in faster-growing species (223 cm² g^?1) than in slower-growing species (167 cm² g^?1). Among the carbon fractions, the acid-insoluble fraction (AIF) was the highest (44–51%). The carbon content, AIF, and the lignocellulose index were higher for slower-growing species. Root tissue density was lower in faster-growing species (0.33 g cm^?3) than slower-growing species (0.40 g cm^?3) and showed a strong positive correlation with carbon content (r ² = 0.84) and the AIF (r _pearson = 0.93). The morphological traits of fine roots between faster- and slower-growing species reflect the ecological strategy they employ. Slower-growing species have a higher tissue density which may reflect a greater longevity.     

Population dynamics of Walia ibex (Capra walie) at Simien Mountains National Park,Ethiopia

Intensive total direct counts of Walia ibex (Capra walie) population were performed at Simien Mountains National Park (SMNP) in 2009. Historical data were collected from SMNP and literature reviews. Different models were suited to determine population growth rates and intrinsic rate of increase. The population size estimated was 745 animals. The correlation between the two repeated counts was significant (r = 0.99 and P < 0.01). Mean instantaneous growth rate (r), growth rate per capita (λ) and population annual growth rate (Λ) were 2.6 ± 2.6, 0.03 ± 0.18 and 19.5 ± 50.4, respectively. Instantaneous growth rate and growth rate per capita were positively correlated (r = 0.958, P < 0.01). Average growth rate (rΛ) and intrinsic rate of increase (rr) under ideal (r = 0.950, P < 0.01) and random environments (r = 0.810, P < 0.01) were positively correlated. The population grows by 2.5% under ideal environments with an intrinsic increase of 0.04 (0.006%) and by 0.13% under random environments with intrinsic rate of decrease of ?0.184 or ?0.025% per year, respectively. The mean rank of the flock structure of whole population was 3.13, 3.88, 2.00 and 1.00 for males, females, juveniles and unidentified, respectively.     

Integrated Environmental and Genomic Analysis Reveals the Drivers of Local Adaptation in African Indigenous Chickens

Breeding for climate resilience is currently an important goal for sustainable livestock production. Local adaptations exhibited by indigenous livestock allow investigating the genetic control of this resilience. Ecological niche modeling (ENM) provides a powerful avenue to identify the main environmental drivers of selection. Here, we applied an integrative approach combining ENM with genome-wide selection signature analyses (XPEHH and Fst) and genotype−environment association (redundancy analysis), with the aim of identifying the genomic signatures of adaptation in African village chickens. By dissecting 34 agro-climatic variables from the ecosystems of 25 Ethiopian village chicken populations, ENM identified six key drivers of environmental challenges: One temperature variable—strongly correlated with elevation, three precipitation variables as proxies for water availability, and two soil/land cover variables as proxies of food availability for foraging chickens. Genome analyses based on whole-genome sequencing (n = 245), identified a few strongly supported genomic regions under selection for environmental challenges related to altitude, temperature, water scarcity, and food availability. These regions harbor several gene clusters including regulatory genes, suggesting a predominantly oligogenic control of environmental adaptation. Few candidate genes detected in relation to heat-stress, indicates likely epigenetic regulation of thermo-tolerance for a domestic species originating from a tropical Asian wild ancestor. These results provide possible explanations for the rapid past adaptation of chickens to diverse African agro-ecologies, while also representing new landmarks for sustainable breeding improvement for climate resilience. We show that the pre-identification of key environmental drivers, followed by genomic investigation, provides a powerful new approach for elucidating adaptation in domestic animals.