Rare breed: Difference between revisions

{{About|rare breeds of animals||Rare Breed (disambiguation){{!}}

{{TAFI}}Rare breed}}

[[File:White Park.jpg|thumb|250px|[[White Park]] are an ancient [[breed]] of [[cattle]] that qualify as a rare breed.]]

A '''rare breed''' is defined as a [[breed]] of [[livestock]] or [[poultry]] that is not common in modern [[agriculture]], though it may have been in the past. Various national and international organizations, such as the [[UN]] [[Food and Agriculture Organization]], [[The Livestock Conservancy]] in the USA, or the [[Rare Breeds Survival Trust]] of the United Kingdom, each define the exact parameters of what defines a rare breed. Many breeds that qualify as rare by these standards may only have a few thousand or even just a few hundred breeding individuals.<ref>{{cite book |title=Storey's Illustrated Breed Guide to Sheep, Goats, Cattle and Pigs |last=Ekarius |first=Carol |year=2008 |publisher=[[Storey Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-60342-036-5 }}</ref> These organizations pursue [[Conservation biology|conservation]] of heritage livestock and poultry for their unique traits, which can contribute to [[genetic diversity]] among animals important to human food supplies and economies, as well as general [[biodiversity]] and improvements in [[animal husbandry]]. The parallel of rare animal breeds are [[heirloom plant]]s, which are rare [[cultivar]]s.<ref>{{cite book |title=The encyclopedia of historic and endangered livestock and poultry breeds |last=Dohner |first=Janet Vorwald |year=2002 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-08880-9 }}</ref>

* [[Landrace]]

* [[:Category:ALBC Conservation Priority Breeds|ALBC conservation priority breeds]]

* [[SVF Foundation]]

<references />

[[Category:Rare breed conservation]]

[[Category:Livestock]]

{{livestock-stub}}