Predicting farm-level animal populations using environmental and socioeconomic variables

Assessing the genetic diversity in small farm animal populations.

Genetic variation is vital for the populations to adapt to varying environments and to respond to artificial selection; therefore, any conservation and development scheme should start from assessing the state of variation in the population. There are several marker-based and pedigree-based parameters to describe genetic variation. The most suitable ones are rate of inbreeding and effective popu...

Management of genetic diversity in small farm animal populations.

Many local breeds of farm animals have small populations and, consequently, are highly endangered. The correct genetic management of such populations is crucial for their survival. Managing an animal population involves two steps: first, the individuals who will be permitted to leave descendants are to be chosen and the number offspring they will be permitted to produce has to be determined; se...

Predicting later life health status and mortality using state-level socioeconomic characteristics in early life

Studies extending across multiple life stages promote an understanding of factors influencing health across the life span. Existing work has largely focused on individual-level rather than area-level early life determinants of health. In this study, we linked multiple data sets to examine whether early life state-level characteristics were predictive of health and mortality decades later. The s...

Economics and Farm Animal Welfare

Predicting the dynamics of animal behaviour in field populations

Many species show considerable variation in behaviour among individuals. We show that some behaviours are largely deterministic and predictable with mathematical models. We propose a general differential equation model of behaviour in field populations and use the methodology to explain and predict the dynamics of sleep and colony attendance in seabirds as a function of environmental factors. O...