Animal genetic resources for food and agriculture of animal genetic resources includes diversity at species, breed and within-breed level. Known are currently 8,800 different breeds of birds and mammals within 38 species used for food and agriculture. The main animal species used for food and agriculture production are cattle, sheep, goats, chickens and pigs. In the livestock world, these species are often referred to as "the big five". Some less-utilized species include the dromedary, donkey, bactrian camel, buffalo, guinea pig, horse, rabbit, yak, goose, duck, ostrich,partridge, pheasant, pigeon, and turkey. The history of animal genetic resources begins about 12,000 to 14,000 years ago. The domestication of major
Animal husbandry in South Africa Western Cape and the Free State. Holstein, Jersey, and Ayrshire are the most popular breeds of commercial dairy cattle. When Europeans first arrived in South Africa, the raising of fat-tailed sheep was well established over much of the present day territory. Indigenous sheep breeds, which were raised more for meat than wool, include the Damara, Zulu, and Pedi sheep. During the 1800s, British settlers introduced Merino sheep, which precipitated a brief commercial wool-boom in the Cape Colony. Animal husbandry in South Africa Animal husbandry in South Africa has a long history which greatly predates European colonization. Nguni people who migrated