Variation and Evolution: Selective Breeding

Selective breeding, also known as artificial selection, is a process used by humans to develop new organisms with desired characteristics.
Breeders select two parents that have beneficial traits to reproduce, yielding offspring with those desirable characteristics.
This procedure is commonly used in agriculture for enhancing the traits of crops and livestock. It has also been used for pet breeding, and to improve species used for industrial fermentation.
Breeds of dogs, for example, have been selectively bred over centuries to highlight specific characteristics, such as size, temperament, or ability to perform tasks.
Selective breeding involves multiple rounds of selection and breeding. Over generations, the desired trait becomes more and more pronounced.
This process can lead to an increased occurrence of specific alleles that are advantageous, thus these traits become more common within the population over time.
One major limitation of selective breeding is that it can lead to “inbreeding”, where individuals are bred with close relatives to maintain desired traits. This can result in a reduced gene pool, with decreased genetic diversity and increased susceptibility to genetic diseases.
Selective breeding is distinct from genetic modification, where genes are directly manipulated or inserted to create desired traits.
Selective breeding aligns with the theory of evolution. Over time, advantageous traits are naturally selected and become more common in a population. However, in selective breeding, this process is guided by human intervention to enhance specific traits.
This topic connects with the broader concepts of genetics, reproduction, and biodiversity, which also study variation and how traits move through populations.