looser
October 30th, 2003, 5:41:22 PM
Apparently our Beloved Bills have been contaminated with cow DNA
A new genetic analysis may be bad news for a buffalo herd of dubious pedigree that's been making trouble in the Grand Canyon. Early indications are that the animals are chock-full of cow DNA.
The herd, owned by the state of Arizona, has been straying from its normal range and venturing into Grand Canyon National Park, creating mud and dust wallows and trampling native vegetation. Park scientists would like to get rid of the beasts.........
Preliminary results show that more than 90% of the animals sampled have cow genes. James Derr, a molecular geneticist at Texas A&M University in College Station, tested the first 13 samples and plans to analyze more of the 150-member herd in early November. So far, the results line up with other studies by Derr. He has documented pure bison genetics in the vast majority of herds on federal lands. But most private and state herds, including Arizona's, originated with entrepreneurs such as Charles "Buffalo" Jones, whose "cattalo" experiments sought to cross bison and cows
A new genetic analysis may be bad news for a buffalo herd of dubious pedigree that's been making trouble in the Grand Canyon. Early indications are that the animals are chock-full of cow DNA.
The herd, owned by the state of Arizona, has been straying from its normal range and venturing into Grand Canyon National Park, creating mud and dust wallows and trampling native vegetation. Park scientists would like to get rid of the beasts.........
Preliminary results show that more than 90% of the animals sampled have cow genes. James Derr, a molecular geneticist at Texas A&M University in College Station, tested the first 13 samples and plans to analyze more of the 150-member herd in early November. So far, the results line up with other studies by Derr. He has documented pure bison genetics in the vast majority of herds on federal lands. But most private and state herds, including Arizona's, originated with entrepreneurs such as Charles "Buffalo" Jones, whose "cattalo" experiments sought to cross bison and cows