Chapter 1. Introduction
Utilisation and conservation of farm animal genetic resources 23
Wars, political instabilities, diseases and natural disasters destroy not only populations of local breeds but oten the whole infrastructure for breeding is lost.
6.2. Opportunities
Besides threats, several opportunities can be found to use farm animal genetic resources Oldenbroek, 2006:
When a breed or a line is exploited in a viable livestock system it is oten managed and developed by a breeding company or an organisation of breeders. In the modern
breeding schemes the conservation of the genetic diversity can and should be taken into account and should be optimised in combination with selection for the desired
traits. hese optimisation techniques are well developed and efective and will be described in chapter 8.
Grazing animals, particularly local and well adapted breeds of sheep, cattle and horses can play an important role in nature management. Where appropriate, this
role ofers a great opportunity for the conservation of the herbivore species as large numbers of animals are potentially involved.
he development of organic farming ofers an opportunity for the conservation of the recently developed dual purpose breeds. In many cases these breeds are set aside
from the intensive livestock systems. However, they it better in the production goals of organic farming than intensively selected breeds or crossbreds.
he development and production of special regional products in natural environments for niche markets ofers the possibility to use native breeds and to
make them proitable again. Hobbyists play a very important role in the utilisation and conservation of the
between breed variation in chicken, horse, sheep, goat and cattle.
7. Conservation methods to be applied
heoretically, three types of conservation can be applied FAO, 2006: In situ conservation, deined as conservation of livestock through continued use by
livestock keepers in the agro-ecosystem in which the livestock evolved or are now normally found includes breeding programmes. his method of conservation is
to be preferred. All objectives of conservation can be reached the best and it ofers possibilities for utilisation. Besides, the development of the breed can continue and
it facilitates adaptation to changing circumstances. However, the risks of inbreeding and random drit have to receive full attention in the breeding schemes of these
oten small populations. Ex situ in vivo conservation, deined as conservation through maintenance of live
populations not kept under normal farm conditions andor outside of the area in
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Kor Oldenbroek
24 Utilisation and conservation of farm animal genetic resources
which they evolved or are now normally found. For cultural historic reasons only a few animals of a breed are kept in zoos or farm parks were they fulil a museum
role. he costs of this type of conservation are low, but the breed is kept outside its environment and further adaptation to this environment is impossible.
Ex situ cryo conservation, deined as the storage of gametes of embryos in liquid
nitrogen. An overview of the literature Hiemstra et al., 2006 indicates that for
most farm animal species it is possible to cryoconserve semen and realise high or acceptable levels of conception ater thawing the semen and inseminating
females. For many farm animal species frozen embryos can be used to create live ofspring. Also, developments have been made in freezing techniques for oocytes.
For all animal species DNA-storage and storage of somatic cells is a well-known technology. However, techniques like nuclear transfer should be developed further
and more eicient in order to use these types of storage to regenerate animals ater conservation.
In practice, the diference between in situ conservation and ex situ in vivo conservation
can be rather vague and only a clear distinction can be made as : in vivo the combination
of in situ and ex situ in vivo and in vitro ex situ conservation. Integration of in situ
and ex situ methods can provide a powerful conservation strategy, as we will see in
chapters 2 and 8.
8. Stakeholders for in vivo and in vitro conservation programs
At the global level many stakeholders are involved in the conservation of farm animal genetic resource: national governments, institutes for research and education including
universities, non governmental organisations, breeders’ associations, farmers and pastoralists, part time farmers and hobbyists, and breeding companies. he following
section provides a brief overview of the role of the various stakeholders.
8.1. National governments
National governments provide the legal base for utilisation and conservation programmes. his is done under legislation relating to the protection of biodiversity
or under legislation regulating the management of farm animal genetic resources, of livestock production and of animal breeding. he national governments should be
heavily involved in the development of national strategies for management, utilisation and conservation of farm animal genetic resources and they should provide funding for
implementing national strategies chapter 9.
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