Uses of Selective Breeding
Biology: AQA GCSE Higher, topic 6.2.6
Uses of Selective Breeding
Usefulness and appearance are the two most common reasons for a characteristic being considered desirable. Some useful examples are:
Crops
- Disease resistance in food crops is a useful characteristic because it improves yield (food production productivity).
Animals
- In farming, animals that produce more milk or meat are also useful for yield-related reasons.
Dogs
- Gentle-natured domestic dogs are useful as these animals must co-exist (live with) with humans.
Flowers
- Flowers can be selected based on visual criteria, such as size or colour.
Test yourself on Uses of Selective Breeding
Why is a gentle nature in domestic dogs considered a useful characteristic for selective breeding?
Why does producing more milk or meat make farm animals useful for selective breeding?
Why is disease resistance in food crops considered a useful characteristic?
Why are flowers often selectively bred based on colour or size?
Which of these characteristics is desirable mainly because of its appearance, rather than its usefulness?