Understanding the genetics of fertility and temperament in Northern beef cattle using genomic technologies

Abstract

Fertility and temperament are important drivers of productivity in the beef industry of northern Australia. The purpose of this study was to determine the heritability of temperament and fertility traits and to estimate the genetic correlation between these traits using a gBLUP analysis. Fertility phenotypes, Post-partum anoestrus interval (PPAI) and age at puberty (AGECL, Tscore) were recorded in Brahman (n=936), Tropical composite (n=1,097) and Smart Futures Heifers (n=3,696). Flighttime records totalled 4,645. The genotype data was imputed from 35k to 800k SNP. Heritability was 0.56(0.08), 0.37(0.08), 0.44(0.11), 0.24(0.08), 0.19(0.03) and 0.33(0.03) for AGECL(Brahman), AGECL (Tropical composite), PPAI (Brahman), PPAI (Tropical composite), Tscore (Smart Futures Heifers) and Flighttime respectively. Genetic correlation was -0.01(0.10), -0.06(0.11), -0.03(0.07) and 0.32(0.09) between AGECL and Flighttime, PPAI and Flighttime, Tscore and Flighttime and PPAI and AGECL respectively. The result suggests that selecting for improved temperament would not improve fertility.