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
Shetland animal breeds dairy and beef. Modern Shetland cattle are usually pied black and white, although other colours were common in the past and sometimes still occur. These cattle are similar in type to other European traditional cattle breeds, and are sometimes used for conservation grazing (the management of natural habitats using grazing animals). Sheep have been kept on the Shetland Isles for at least a thousand years. They are one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group of breeds, and were regarded as a local type of the extinct Scottish Dunface, which was found throughout the Highlands and Islands of Scotland (and