* THE END OF THE RAINBOW THE 57 YEAR JOURNEY TO PROVE THE TRADITIONAL LANDRACE OLD IRISH GOAT AND IT S PLACE IN EUROPEAN GOAT HISTORY Raymond Werner June, 2017
ESTABLISHED AREAS OF RESEARCH PHENOTYPE HISTORY GENOTYPE
GOING, GOING, GONE By 1960, THE OLD BRITISH GOATS WERE EXTINCT IN DOMESTICATION WELSH GOAT IN 1930 S SCOTCH GOAT IN 1940 S ENGLISH GOAT IN THE IRISH GOAT HUNG ON, BUT WAS SIDE- 1952 LINED AND OFTEN CONFUSED WITH OTHER BREEDS
BUT WHAT OF FERAL GOATS? FOUND IN BORDER HILLS, SCOTLAND, WALES AND IRELAND NOT ASSOCIATED WITH LANDRACE GOAT BREEDS BELIEVED REVERSION TO THE WILD TYPE SIMPLE FORMULA: ANY GOAT + HARSH FERAL CONDITIONS + NATURAL SELECTION = A FERAL GOAT
MAIN RESEARCH OUTCOME: IRISH AND OLD BRITISH GOATS A COLD WEATHER GOAT PHENOTYPE: SMALL, COBBY, ROUND BARREL, LONG-FACED, SMALL PRICKED EARS, HARSH OUTER COAT, ABUNDANT CASHMERE UNDERCOAT
A CASHMERE GOAT DEVELOPED UNDER SAME CONDITIONS AS THE ASIAN CASHMERE GOAT BREED GROUPS
HISTORICAL CRETAN WILD GOAT EARLY FERAL DOMESTICANT THIS THE TYPE OF THE GOAT OF THE DANUBIANS, SWINE CULTURE PEOPLE, MEGALITHIC PEOPLE, BEAKER PEOPLE, CELTS NO KNOWN CLIMATIC PHASE THAT WOULD PRODUCE A COLD WEATHER GOAT IN HOLOCENE EUROPE PROBLEM
MUST PREDATE THE AGRICULTURAL NEOLITHIC PASTORAL NOMADS CAUGHT UP IN EXTREME COLD AND ARID PHASE EARLIEST GOAT TYPE IN EUROPE
THE COLD WEATHER SEARCH EXTENDS TO EUROPE IDENTIFIED THE DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN LANDRACES WITH THE COLD WEATHER GOAT DUTCH, NORWEGIAN, ICELANDIC, SWEDISH AND FINNISH LANDRACES INCLUSION OF FINNISH LANDRACE THEORETICAL CLOSELY RELATED (COMMON ORIGIN AND EARLY HISTORY) TO THE IRISH AND OLD BRITISH LANDRACES
A NEW CLASSICIFATON FOR EUROPEAN GOAT BREEDS ATLANTO-SCANDINAVIAN BREED GROUP COMPRISES: ATLANTIC LANDRACE GROUP LOW COUNTRIES LANDRACE GROUP SCANDINAVIAN LANDRACE GROUP AS DISTINCT FROM: STANDARD, MEDITERRANEAN AND BALKAN BREED GROUPS
THE OUTCOMES OF HISTORIC AND PHENOTYPIC RESEARCH OLD BRITISH (INCLUDING BAGOT) AND OLD IRISH GOATS VERY CLOSELY RELATED AND FORM A GROUP (COMMON ORIGIN AND HISTORY) LIKEWISE FOR DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN LANDRACES COLLECTIVELY A BREED GROUP OF COLD WEATHER ORIGIN (ATLANTO-SCANDINAVIAN BREED GROUP) DISTINCT FROM (1) BRITISH IMPROVED BREEDS, (2) EUROPEAN GOAT BREEDS GENERALLY
ENTER THE DNA ANALYSIS: THE FINDINGS TO DATE A DISTINCT OLD IRISH GOAT HAS EXISTED HISTORICALLY AND CONTINUES TO DO SO THIS BREED AND THE OLD BRITISH LANDRACES FORM A DISTINCT GROUP WITH A COMMON ORIGIN (ATLANTIC LANDRACE GROUP) THE BREADTH OF DATING FOR SAMPLES SUGGESTS CONTINUANCE OF AN ANCIENT LANDRACE TYPE THEY ARE DISTINCT FROM THE IMPROVED BRITISH BREEDS OF THE LAND, AND FROM EUROPEAN GOAT BREEDS GENERALLY THE HIGHLAND GOAT IS DISTINCT
A SURPRISE FINDING: THE OLD WELSH GOAT THE OLD WELSH GOAT CLUSTERS WITH THE OLD BRITISH TYPE OLD ENGLISH, BAGOT, WELSH, LOWLAND SCOTCH, HEBRIDEAN
YET MORE SURPRISES THE LOUGH REE OLD IRISH GOAT SEEMS TO CLUSTER MORE NEARLY TO OLD BRITISH (CHEVIOT AND BAGOT) GOATS THE BILBERRY GOAT CLUSTERS MORE NEARLY TO THE LOUGH REE AND OLD BRITISH GOATS THAN TO THE OLD IRISH GOATS ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF IRELAND
SOME UNRESOLVED AREAS FOR RESEARCH WHAT IS A MANX LANDRACE GOAT? HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY = ENGLISH, IRISH OR SCOTCH?
WHAT IS A BILBERRY GOAT? OLD IRISH?
CASHMERE?
NORSE? OLD IRISH X EXOTIC IMPORT, OR EXOTIC IMPORT X OLD IRISH, OR OLD IRISH?
AND THE BIG ONE! WHY WOULD OLD IRISH GOAT STOCK IN THE MIDDLE OF IRELAND CLUSTER MORE CLOSELY TO OLD BRITISH SAMPLES THAN TO THOSE FROM THE REST OF IRELAND?
ENDPIECE: THE IRISH TRAVELLING HERD OUTCOMES SAMPLES FROM MULRANNY IN COUNTY MAYO, SHOW A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP TO SAMPLES FROM SCALPAY, OFF SKYE, INNER HEBRIDES
THE GOAT MEN OF SOUTH ARMAGH BOUGHT STOCK IN MAYO/GALWAY WALKED 175 MILES FROM S. ARMAGH; 200 MILES BACK TO DOCKS; SAILED THROUGH THE HEBRIDES (WALKED NEARLY 400 MILES) THE IRISH TRAVELLING HERD IN SURREY = NEARLY 400 MILES ACROSS IRELAND AND BACK; 600 MILES ACROSS WALES/ENGLAND AND BACK = 1,000 MILES