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Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. [1] By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction , but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and other consequences that may arise from expression of deleterious recessive traits resulting from ...
The term refers to both breeds and strains that are naturally polled through selective breeding and also to naturally horned animals that have been disbudded. [1] Natural polling occurs in cattle , yaks , water buffalo , and goats , and in these animals it affects both sexes equally; in sheep , by contrast, both sexes may be horned, both polled ...
The rest of the group is made up of progressively smaller males that do not breed and have no functioning gonads. [18] If the female dies, in many cases, the reproductive male gains weight and becomes the female for that group. The largest non-breeding male then sexually matures and becomes the reproductive male for the group. [19]
Inbreeding avoidance mechanisms have evolved in response to selection against inbred offspring. Inbreeding avoidance occurs in nature by at least four mechanisms: kin recognition, dispersal, extra-pair/extra-group copulations, and delayed maturation/reproductive suppression.
Inbreeding (i.e., breeding between closely related individuals) results in more recessive traits manifesting themselves, as the genomes of pair-mates are more similar. Recessive traits can only occur in an offspring if present in both parents' genomes.
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Sheep have a breeding season (tupping) in the autumn, though some can breed year-round. [1] As a result of the influence of humans on sheep breeding, ewes often produce multiple lambs. This increase in lamb births, both in number and birth weight, may cause problems with delivery and lamb survival, requiring the intervention of shepherds. [2]
Mammal breeding in the wild sometimes involves the use of maternity dens for birthing and protection of the young. The polar bear is an example of a mammal who uses a maternity den, whose locations are influenced by migration movements of this species to the seasonal Arctic pack ices .