The status of white and red alpacas in the Australian herd
By Elizabeth Paul
B.App.Sci., (App.Biology) R.M.I.T.,
Cert. Animal Technology, F.I.T.
Reprinted by permission of Elizabeth Paul and the Australian Alpaca Association (AAA)
Author’s Note
This study is the third article in this series and is a direct continuation of ‘The status of grey alpacas in the Australian herd’, first published in issue no. 29 of Alpacas Australia. The last table of results in that article was Table 7; the first table of results in this article is therefore Table 8.
Introduction
White fleece or fur is generally a less viable option for a wild animal than coloured fur since a white animal is more visible both as a predator and as a prey species.
Albino white, where the eyesight is affected by the loss of pigment in the retinas, is even less of an option and very few natural albinos survive for long in the wild.
Even if they are able to find enough food, albinos may be rejected by their group, or unable to find a mate, since patterns of colour are extremely important as recognition or sexual signals.
However, in extreme environments such as the Arctic, white fur has a much stronger survival advantage. Arctic seal pups born on the ice floes may be white to protect them from being easily seen by polar bears; the pups moult to a dark coat by the time they are able to swim. Arctic hares and foxes moult between pure white fur in winter and mottled brown and white fur in summer to increase their survival chances in changing backgrounds. The underfur of many animals is also white; this may represent a saving of energy for the animal as regards pigment production.
Since the domestication of animals by humans began, white animals in a dark herd would have been very useful as markers. They may also have had superstitious significance; the colour white has religious significance in many cultures today.
In a farming or a laboratory situation, white fleece or fur is less of a disadvantage to the animal and, on a purely practical level, it can be dyed any colour without interference from the natural pigments.
White fleece may be produced by a number of genes operating on different points of the pigment production pathways. These may include white-spotting genes; dominant whites; recessive whites and diluting genes (Searle, A.G.). To further investigate this aspect, the progeny results of Tables 4-7 inclusive (Paul, E.) were combined and re-presented in Table 8.
Discussion of results of Table 8
White x white matings produced approximately 62% white progeny and 37% coloured progeny. Of this 37%, solid colours accounted for 22%, white/coloured progeny for 13.6% and grey progeny for 2% of the total.
White x white/coloured matings produced the next highest proportion of white progeny, at 33% of total progeny, and the highest proportion of white/coloured progeny of all mating groups at 36% of total progeny.
White/coloured x white/coloured matings produced 53% solid colour progeny; 26% white/coloured progeny and 21% white progeny.
Solid colour x white/coloured matings produced 20% white/coloured progeny and approximately 7% white progeny, while solid colour x solid colour matings produced less than 3% each of white and white/coloured progeny.
Grey x grey matings also produced less than 3% each of these progeny types.
Summary
Both white and white/coloured progeny were more likely to be produced from matings where at least one of the parents was either white or white/coloured.
Both progeny phenotypes occurred in low proportions from matings involving only solid colour and/or grey parents.
For all white x colour matings, more coloured progeny were produced than white progeny, irrespective of whether the coloured parent was solid coloured, white/coloured or grey.
It would appear that white and white-spotting genes are closely associated in alpacas. Some ‘white’ alpacas may be mega white-spotted animals carrying colour genes.
Red and brown
As the colour of wild vicunas and guanacos appears to be orange-red or reddish fawn (Franklin, W.L.), it is surprising how often they are referred to in the literature as being brown. If there is no difference between red and brown colours, there would not appear to be any need to distinguish between them when breeding or registering alpacas.
From personal observations, a red (fawn) alpaca is one shade of red (fawn) all over (possibly with lighter underparts), but generally similar to a chestnut horse.
A brown alpaca appears to have not only a darker shade of brown fleece but also black (or very darkest brown points, giving it the appearance of a bay horse.
If red fleece colour is different from brown fleece colour, then matings involving red parents should produce different progeny colour results from matings involving brown parents.
The results in Table 9 were drawn from Table 2 (Paul, E.) in issue 28 of Alpacas Australia.
Conclusions
The following conclusions have been drawn from the results of all three studies.
Types of ‘white’ which may be present include:
This mix of genotypes may account for some of the 37% of coloured progeny born so far from white x white matings in the Australian alpaca herd.
Further research on the results in successive Herd Books will be continuing.
Discussion of results of Table 9
Red progeny were produced in highest proportions from red x red and red x white matings.
Brown x red matings produced all progeny colours in proportions between those of red x red and those of brown x brown matings. The proportion of black progeny produced was 12.4% for brown x brown matings; 5.6 % for brown x red matings and less than 2% for red x red matings.
Red x white matings produced approximately 42% red progeny and 27% brown progeny, whereas brown x white matings produced 43% brown progeny and 27% red progeny.
Red x black matings produced 55% brown progeny and 18.5% each of red and black progeny.
Brown x black matings produced 52% brown progeny; 40% black progeny and less than 3% red progeny.
Black x black matings (included for comparison) produced 12% brown progeny and 1% red progeny.
The inclusion of at least one red parent increased the proportion of white progeny produced, while the inclusion of at least one brown parent increased the proportion of black progeny produced.
Thus, on the basis of the progeny colour results, it appears that red colour is separate from brown/black colour and is not simply a dilute form of brown.
It is also likely that red colour is affected by different diluting genes from those which operate on brown/black pigment. In other species, this is called a ‘chinchilla’ gene. It dilutes red/yellow pigment to fawn, biscuit, cream or near-white, with the animals retaining dark eyes and noses (Searle, A.G.). This may account for some alpacas being born fawn and turning white with maturity. A diluted red alpaca with white-spotting genes would also be indistinguishable from a white alpaca.
In the model originally proposed by the author, red and black colour genes were assumed to have an additive effect in producing brown fleece colour. While this may not be valid for all brown fleece, the red x black mating results are very suggestive of this effect.
In the modified model, the B gene becomes a dominant brown allele, with black being the recessive bb allele. The R gene stands as representing red colour and is separate from brown colour. The M gene may represent full colour as in a D (diluting) gene for brown/black pigment; or full colour as in a C (chinchilla) gene which dilutes red/yellow pigment.
Disclaimer
The author’s opinions and conclusions are based solely on personal research and interpretation of the mating results present in the Australian Alpaca Association Herd Books, Vols. 1-6 inclusive.
The author is not responsible for any breeding or other decision taken by any other person in relation to these opinions or interpretations.
Caption
These rosegrey cria are full siblings. The sire is a light rosegrey, the dam, pictured with cria No 3, is dark rosegrey. The two older cria are also shown at 20 months and 10 months. Their fleece colours are almost identical in shade.