The Black Sheep of the Family. (25)
A phrase most people will have heard
Inherited, Not Chosen
The Black Sheep of the Family. (25)
A phrase most people will have heard
Photo by Valentin Lacoste on Unsplash
British spelling.
Passing a field last week, I noticed one or two black lambs among hundreds of white ones.
Each sheep carries instructions, or genes, that determine traits like wool colour.
Most lambs are born with white wool, as it is dominant, masking other possibilities.
However, hidden within the flock are recessive genes for black wool, silently passed from parent to offspring.
Every now and again, a mother and father will both pass on this recessive gene to their offspring; the outcome is a fleece that grows black.
These lambs are not freaks of nature but reminders of inherited diversity.
The wild ancestors of domesticated sheep were predominantly dark-coloured; over thousands of years, humans have selectively bred sheep for white wool.
One of the benefits of white wool is that it colours easily.
메타데이터
- post_id
- e27bcbd578df
- slug
- the-black-sheep-of-the-family-25-e27bcbd578df
- url
- https://medium.com/the-daily-cuppa/the-black-sheep-of-the-family-25-e27bcbd578df
- canonical_url
- https://medium.com/the-daily-cuppa/the-black-sheep-of-the-family-25-e27bcbd578df
- author_url
- https://medium.com/@andraforbes
- status
- ok
- fetched_at
- 2026-06-09 15:37:30
