Newly-bred yaks help herders on 'roof of world' out of poverty

BEIJING -- Under the touch of the petite scientist Yan Ping, the tall and powerful black yak, weighing over 400 kg, is as obedient as a lamb.

Unlike other yaks, this one has no horns. It is a new breed cultivated by Yan and her team from the Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. It is expected to help herdsmen on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, known as the "roof of the world," out of poverty.

It took more than 20 years for Yan's team, working with Datong Yak Breeding Farm in Northwest China's Qinghai province, to breed the Ashidan yak, named after the 4,380-meter Ashidan Mountain that looms over the farm.

"The Ashidan yak has no horns and has a mild temperament, so it is easier to keep and feed in stalls," Yan said.

"It is better suited to large-scale intensive breeding in the cold and arid alpine areas of China. We can make full use of the feed resources in alpine and semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral areas of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau."

Traditionally, yaks are grazed seasonally on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Grazing, supplementary feeding and whole house feeding can be combined to increase yak production in all seasons, said Yan.

Naturally, about 6 percent or 7 percent of yaks in Qinghai have no horns and these were selected for the breeding program. Scientists identified the genes related to horns and cultivated the Ashidan using molecular breeding technology. Each Ashidan has a similar physique and appearance, and they are genetically stable, said Yan.

Under the same feed conditions, the average reproductive survival rate of the Ashidan yak is 59.98 percent, 11.72 percentage points higher than local yaks, and mortality is 1.24 percent, 4.32 percentage points lower, according to the research team.

The Ashidan yak was also bred to improve meat production. Almost 4,000 male Ashidan yaks have been introduced to Qinghai farms to improve the stock.

Statistics show that the average weight of the Ashisan at 18-months is 92.77 kg, 24.71 percent heavier than local yaks.