Five Founders, One Island: Amsterdam Island Cattle Defy Dwarfism Myths
DNA from Amsterdam Island’s five founding cows shows mixed Jersey and Indian Ocean zebu ancestry, meaning the tiny herd did not shrink via rapid island dwarfism but started small with enough genetic diversity to rebound into thousands; the study, based on eight whole genomes, upends a 2017 dwarfism claim and suggests the founders carried traits favorable for isolation, despite about 30% inbreeding, before the herd was ultimately removed to protect native species.