Book review

Porter, V. (ed.): Mason’s World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties,5th edn. CABI Publishing. Wallingford, Oxon, UK, 2002. 400 pp. £60.00 (US$110.0)ISBN 0-851-99430-X.

The variety of earth’s landscape and of human culture has given an amazing diversity of livestock.Within the domesticated species selection and adaptation has created thousands of breeds, whicheverywhere in the world have become essential ingredients of local agriculture, history and tradition.

Since 1951, Ian Mason compiled and edited four editions of his authoritative World Dictionary ofLivestock Breeds, Types and Varieties. In the fifth edition, now revised by Valerie Porter, his name hasmoved to the title, Mason’s World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties, an honour welldeserved.

This excellent work of reference on cattle, buffaloes, goats, sheep, pigs, horses and asses has beenupdated after sending out queries to local experts all over the world and by using the third edition ofthe FAO World Watch List for Domestic Animal Variety. The result is a dictionary that includesvirtually any word referring to a four-legged livestock animal. As the language of the farmers is asdiverse as their animals, the list of entries is multilingual. For instance, Groningen Whiteheaded is alsounder Blaarkop and Schweizerisches Braunvieh refers to Swiss Brown. A glossary of terms that in thevarious languages occur in breed names is included. So rotbunt in one country is pezzata rossa or redpied elsewhere, to name just one of the beautiful colour patterns that have been especially created fordomestic animals.

How can a reviewer check the completeness of this volume without having the same encyclopaedicknowledge as the author? We had to try hard in order to find omissions. However, it is not mentionedexplicitly that the popular, if incorrect use of buffalo refers to the roaming type, the American bison,while ox is also the zoological designation of the species Bos taurus. Further, a glossary of French termsis missing. Anything else that remains to be desired? Only two Internet addresses are mentioned, oneof these to the EAAP Web page but incomplete. I would like to recommend the Oklahoma sitewww.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/, which provides additional information and illustrations for manyentries in this dictionary.

How to speculate on its future? New breeds are not likely to evolve and it would be a shame if nextrevisions only witness the replacement of rare variants by the most producing cosmopolitan breeds. Inthe genomic era we will want to understand the molecular basis of the diversity of livestock. This willbe a challenge to us scientists.

Hans Lenstra, Utrecht

J. Anim. Breed. Genet. 119 (2002), 284� 2002 Blackwell Verlag, BerlinISSN 0931–2668