The interpretation of genotypic ratios in domestic animal populations

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Abstract
SUMMARY: If, from a population, samples of individuals are drawn with a small number of parents, it is shown that there will be on average an apparent excess of heterozygotes above the number calculated from the gene frequency in each sample. The apparent proportional excess is where M and F are the number of male and female parents. This is independent of the number of alleles at the locus concerned. The use of the usual significance tests will also be affected. If analyses are done within herds of domestic livestock, particularly cattle, the number of sires in use at any time is likely to lead to a bias of a size which is of biological importance. The conditions under which genotypic ratios can usefully be examined are discussed.