Dominant black in horses

Abstract

The existence of dominant black in horses is supported by a black stallion producing 12 black or near black and no other color of foals from bay mares, and 16 black or nearly black and no other color of foals from chestnut mares. This allele is suggested as being dominant black, E D , at the Extension locus. This allele does not always cause completely eumelanic phenotypes, since some offspring (which were heterozygous) were near black rather than completely black. The dam of this stallion was of a near black or brown, rather than black, phenotype. The sire of this stallion was black. Foals were sometimes born a color close to that of bay foals, but these ultimately turned completely or nearly black at maturity.