eChapters

Livestock is an integral component of Indian agriculture which is primarily a mixed crop-livestock farming system and plays an important role in the socio- economic life of India. Livestock contributes significantly to the growth and development of agricultural sector by providing a rich source of high quality products such as milk, meat and eggs and by supporting livelihood of more than two third of rural population. Livestock has a crucial and rapidly increasing role infood security and economic stability worldwide Livestock sector contributes for 4.11% of GDP and 25.6% of total Agriculture GDP. The importance of livestock has been undergoing a steady transformation with the contribution of livestock in total agriculture and allied sector Gross Value Added increasing from 24.32% in 2014-15 to 28.63% in 2018-19. Owing to factors such as population and economic growth, urbanization, improvements in transportation and storage practices,its future importanceformeeting human nutritional requirements of food and fiberand a major contributor to agricultural GDP is evident.

To alleviate the concerns raised by a rapidly growing demand of food security and the need of ensuring sustainability of natural resources, we need to better understandthe ways which wouldspeed up commercialization of livestock production so that it can contribute effectively to the bio-economy. Livestock performance and productivity can be improved by adopting proper diet and feeding practices, improved farm management and disease controlstrategies.

People all around the world have been conducting genetic association studies for a long time. Still the literature to practically understand the statistical analysis of such data using software packages is scarce. Statistical analysis of molecular data is a vast topic. So we will be undertaking one of the important basic and preliminary topics “Statistical analysis of genetic association studies among unrelated individuals” in this chapter. Overall, we will be discussing population association studies in which qualitative and quantitative data on unrelated individuals for various economic traits is collected and these individuals are also typed at a number of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers. This excludes family-based association studies, admixture mapping or linkage studies. Various software packages used in this chapter to analyze molecular data of a population are given below in Table 1.

Background

Sheep and goats are the poor man’s cow because of the lower capital investment, and production costs. Also supplies milk quantities that are suitable for immediate household consumption thereby reducing problems of milk storage and marketing. Small ruminants, goats and sheep, mainly localized in the arid, semi-arid and mountainous areas of the country, have multi-faceted utility in terms of wool, meat, milk, skins, (mo)hair/pelts, manure and have also acquired socio-cultural niches in many communities (Kosgey and Okeyo, 2007). Goat and sheep milk has many advantages over other livestock species’ milk being easy in digestion, non-allergic, naturally homogenized, improves immunity as it has antifungal and anti-bacterial properties. However, rearing small ruminants for meat is more popular among farmers as price of chevon and mutton are very high, continuously increasing over the years and sale of male for meat is easy, steady and accessible at farmer’s place or local places unlike milk, skin and fibre. Thus, small ruminants (SR) occupy a promising agrarian and economic niche in low to medium input production systems, not suitable for growing crops and dairy farming (Devendra and Chantalakhana, 2002), mostly driven by small and marginal farmers and landless laborers. Their meat and milk production represents 4.8% and 3.4% of the total meat and milk produced, respectively, in the world.

Artificial intelligence (AI) uses multiple technologies that equip machines to sense, comprehend, plan, act, and learn with human-like levels of intelligence. Fundamentally, AI systems perceive environments, recognize objects, contribute to decision making, solve complex problems, learn from past experiences, and imitate patterns. AI technologies such as deep learning allow computer systems to understand a problem, learn from examples, and make predictions.

The AI has a tremendous potential to solve the diverse application problems in the field of domestic animal breeding and management. Till date, most of the studies have been focused on animal behaviour (Valletta, et al., 2017), cognition (Lake et al., 2017), animal welfare (Neethirajan, 2021), individual identification (Norouzzadeh et al., 2018), growth or body condition scoring (Zin et al., 2020), disease detection and its monitoring (Kumar et al., 2021), precision farm management (Radun et al., 2021) etc. particularly in the pigs, poultry and cattle species. These AI based applications primarily involves data generation, data processing, use of gadgets / IoT devices, development of smart machine learning algorithms and their integration to attain precision to solve various issues in animal husbandry. Having said that, very few works have been carried out with respect to applications of AI in domestic animal breeding, and major problems like breed identification, genomics- based animal selection criteria and breeding decision, are yet to be automated. Moreover, there are some bottlenecks in application of AI in animal breeding, like the lower accuracy of a decision/outcome and large cost involved in creating AI based infrastructure.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a discipline of computer science that now days affecting evary aspect of day to day life. It has the potential to greatly improve animal breeding programs in India by providing more accurate and efficient selection methods. Some of the avenues and possibilities of using AI in animal breeding in India includes Predictive analytics: AI can be used to develop optimization models that take into account a variety of factors, such as genetics, phenotypic traits, and environmental conditions, to identify the best breeding strategies. AI can be used to analyze large amounts of data on animal genetics, phenotypic traits, and environmental factors to predict the likelihood of an animal producing offspring with desired traits. This can help breeders make more informed decisions about which animals to be selected for breeding. AI algorithms can be trained to accurately identify diseases in animals by analyzing imaging data, such as X-rays and MRI scans, as well as blood and tissue samples which in turn facilitate veterinarians to make more accurate diagnoses, improving treatment outcomes. AI can also improved feed efficiency by analyzing the feed consumption and nutrient utilization data to identify patterns and trends that can be further utilized to improve feed efficiency, reduced feed costs and increased production efficiency.

Introduction

The sex of the animal is one of the most easily observable attributes of a livestock population. The importance of the sex ratio lies in the fact that it sets the future rates of fertility, mortality, and migration. In livestock, male animals are required in fewer numbers compared to females for breeding. So, for profitable management of a farm, the sex ratio has been fixed for each species. But because of the natural 50:50 chance of both types of sperms to fertilize an ovum, this preferred sex ratio is never achieved. In order to reach this economical ratio, additional efforts must be done in the form of culling. Moreover, in monotocous species with nearly one year gestation period, a long wait is sometimes required for getting the offspring of particular sex.

In dairy farming, the number of female offspring born is always an asset to the farm. For the species reared for meat, the males are often avoided due to the intense odor of their meat and handling difficulty while rearing. But when there is shortage of good quality breeding bulls, the sorted sperms will be helpful for producing the elite bulls for breeding. If we can produce only the animal of the desired gender, we can eliminate split-sex feeding, reduce problems related to animal welfare and castration, improve production efficiencies. Additionally, the costs of the progeny testing programme and embryo transfer are reduced as a result, and the value of genetic markers is increased. Apart from the livestock species, sex pre-selection is also important in breeding of companion animals, zoo animals and endangered species.

Introduction

Raising milk and meat production are long-standing global issues. Researchers are learning that present breeding efforts won't be sufficient to meet anticipated future food demands given the current climate scenario. The animals that influence the overall yield of the field must be screened as soon as possible. In order to build more successful modern breeding programmes, high-throughput phenotyping is currently being included into conventional breeding operations. Despite the public accessibility of their genetic information online, there is still a lack of phenotypic data on the genomes of various animal breeds because environmental factors make it more difficult to define phenotypes and increase the likelihood of measurement error (Rahaman et al., 2015). Genomic selection (GS) is a strategy that predicts the genomic estimated breeding values of lines in a breeding population using information from genome-wide markers (Meuwissen et al., 2001). When compared to other conventional methods like marker-assisted selection (MAS), genomic selection has some inherent advantages. These include boosting genetic gain by reducing breeding cycles and acquiring minor effect loci based on markers dispersed throughout the entire target genome. Reliable phenotypes and genotyping are both necessary for the training of accurate prediction models for genomic selection. Phenotyping is regarded as a significant factor restricting genetic improvements in animal breeding due to high labour and time expenditures. Traditional approaches of phenotyping are prohibitively expensive, time-consuming, and slow.

Energy is essential for each and every single biological reaction in the body of an individual. Production, reproduction and physiological functions of an animal depend on its body state and utilization of energy from dietary source and its body reserves. Energy reserves are determined primarily by the relative amount of fat accessible as an energy source and are indicative of health condition. Adipose tissue (AT) is a primary reservoir of energy and recognized as an immunologically and endocrinologically active tissue. Cattle have the ability to utilize body reserve to meet energy demand due to negative energy balance during peripartum period, which is crucial for maintaining their health lactation and neonates. There are several methods to measure tissue reserves like body weight, metabolic and hormonal factors, respiratory calorimeter body water by dilution with D2 O, estimation of fat cells diameter, ultrasound techniques etc. Body weight is not a good indicator as it is affected by different factors such as; age, parity, gestation, body frame, gastrointestinal contents weight of vital organs and shows a greater variation in measuring fat stores. Other methods are inapplicable in field conditions as they are costly, time consuming and need laboratory facilities and skilled technicians. However Body Condition Score (BCS) is an easier and the most practical method, which is an assessment of thickness of fat cover, prominence of bone of tail and head region.

India is bestowed with a wide variety of livestock species which forms the backbone of the economy of majority of the farmers. Cattle are one of the important species domesticated by man mainly for their draftability in agricultural operations. Rearing of cattle is an integral part of the Indian agriculture as it is always considered as a subsidiary enterprise of the agriculture farming. The indigenous cattle are well known for their adaptability to the harsh tropical climatic conditions, ability to thrive in the resource poor production systems, better feed efficiency and disease resistance. Barring few dairy breeds, majority of the Indigenous cattle breeds are poor in their genetic potential for milk production. Considering the ever increasing demand from milk , the country has implemented many cattle improvement programmes like Central Herd Registration Scheme (CHRS), Intensive Cattle Development Programme (ICDP), All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Cattle National Programme for Bovine Breeding and Dairy Development (NPBBD), National Livestock Mission, National Project for Cattle and Buffalo Breeding (NPCBB), Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM) etc., for improving the milk productivity of cattle.

Introduction

The key factor of sustainability in the animal sector depends upon genetic improvement in domestic livestock. There are many reproductive and molecular biotechnologies used for the genetic improvement of domestic livestock and they are synergistically coupled with the breeding program in distinct breeding targets. With the help of gene editing techniques (e.g. CRISPR etc.). To improve the specific traits of interest scientists can add, delete or replace the nucleotides (e.g. milk production, meat production, disease resistance, etc.) in less than one generation. Gene editing with the conventional breeding program in livestock is an important factor for genetic improvement for increasing the rate of genetic gain. In the present topic, here, we delved into the most important reproductive and molecular technologies used in livestock genetic improvement, as well as the most effective ways for incorporating gene editing into existing genetic improvement programmes and targeting specific traits for enhancement. The improvement in genetic level is a most powerful part of sustainable animal development because it is permanent and the effects are long-lasting and cumulative. Genetic advancements produced in one generation are passed on to the following, unlike dietary and animal health treatments, which are a continuous process. The many livestock operations that involve chemical and mechanical methods such as dehorning requires time, worker, money, animal safety, etc., but their genetic alternation of the concerned gene for the polled or hornless condition can exclude the requirement of physical dehorning. (Gottardo et al. 2011; Tompson et al. 2017).

The global human population is increasing exponentially with time, and it is expected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050 (UN 2013). With rapid population growth, food consumption is predicted to more than double in the next 40 years. Due to limited land resources for cultivation and a stabilising trend in agricultural productivity, the role of livestock sector is increasing significantly to meet the rising food demand. Meanwhile, global livestock production has increased significantly in both number and productivity. Unprecedented urbanisation has a significant impact on food consumption patterns in general, as well as demand for livestock products. Animal diseases are a significant factor in reducing livestock productivity, particularly in developed countries. The limitations of traditional animal breeding hinder further improvement of livestock productivity. The use of biotechnological tools has major applications in improving animal health and production, increasing disease resistance, using assisted reproductive techniques, improving rapid diagnostic techniques, and improving vaccines in livestock systems. These interventions cover advancements in feeding, nutrition, genetics, reproduction, animal health control, and overall improvement of animal husbandry. Since genomic tools and selection have been widely adopted in developed countries to improve both productivity and quality of animal products, the prospects for increasing productivity in developing countries using genomic tools and selection have not been adequately investigated.

Introduction

Wool which obtained primarily from sheep is an essential textile fiber that is used across the world. Whether for clothing, canvas work, carpets, or even upholstery, wool is a vital resource supporting many industries and occupations. This natural fiber has many benefits, such as being biodegradable, easy to clean and even having a natural structure that traps air which is excellent for heat retention. The annual wool production is 2 million tones. China ranks first in terms of global wool production. With a production of more than 333,624 tonnes of wool in 2020, China accounts for approximately 19% of the global wool clip. Australia produces 16% of global wool and is by far the largest wool exporter in the world. There has been a constant increase in the demand of wool products worldwide. This has made scientists to try to improve livestock and livestock associated derivatives. The conventional system along with the recent biotechnological interventions will be helpful for enhancing wool quality and production.

Livestock is one of the fastest growing agricultural subsectors in developing countries. In India has a vast diversity of animal genetic resources. Among them, sheep is an important ‘five star’ livestock species contributing significantly to rural economy through production of mutton, wool, manure, skin and milk etc. Sheep make a valuable contribution to the livelihood of the economically weaker sections of the society. The total Livestock population is 535.78 million and total sheep population is 74.26 million in in the country showing an increase of 4.6% and 14.1%, respectively over Livestock Census-2012. And it’s ranking 3rd in the world after China and Australia. Rajasthan is the fourth largest sheep rearing state in India with 7.9 million population (Livestock Census, 2019). Malpura sheep is one amongst the heaviest sheep breed of India, widely distributed in the semi-arid region of Rajasthan, mostly Tonk, Jaipur and Sawai Madhopur districts. Malpura sheep is reared and improved for mutton production since year 1975 at CSWRI, Avikanagar. The objective since then has been to improve the growth characteristics of this sheep breed for producing more carcass yield.The sheep is known for its adaptability to the harsh environment and potential for high meat production.Coat colour of Malpura sheep is white with coarse wool. The face is light brown with short, blunt ears. Animals have square compact body and long legs. Farmers also have liking for the long tail of animals for aesthetic purpose. The farmers like Malpura sheep for its properties like good mothering ability and produce sufficient milk to sustain and accelerate the growth of their neonates (Mishra et al., 2005), higher weight gain, number of lambs weaned, wool quality, walking capacity and the ease of management.

Livestock breeding for genetic improvement faces many challenges including feed conversion efficiency, fertility and adaptation to changing climate. These improvements have to be realized while maintaining or improving the nutritional properties of meat, milk and other animal products while giving emphasis to animal health and wellbeing also. Environmental stresses induced by climate change affect livestock productivity, reproductive efficiency and health, resulting in severe economic losses. Under the current climate change scenario, the viability of producing animals for human consumption is in jeopardy. In order to lessen the negative effects of heat stress in today’s world, it is urgently necessary to develop methods that are centered on breeding animals with increased thermal tolerance and climate resilience. The breeding of animals having genetic potential to sustain under changing environment conditions can be achieved through the various molecular genetics tools.

Introduction

Estimated breeding values (EBVs), often estimated for sires, are used in traditional animal breeding (TAB) programmes to make selections based on an animal’s performance and that of its relatives. Using, typically, the best linear unbiased projections, EBVs are calculated using attributes measured in own performance, pedigree, sib, and/or progeny evaluation schemes in specialised testing stations and/or selected farm conditions (BLUP; Henderson, 1975). One of the main time-consuming challenges for phenotypic evaluation to enable a meaningful estimation of breeding values is generation intervals of 4 to 5 years in beef cattle, more than 5 years in dairy cattle, and 2 to 2.5 years in pig breeding schemes (Schefers and Weigel, 2012). Modern breeding techniques like marker-assisted selection (MAS) and, more recently, genomic selection (GS) are based on the use of genetic DNA markers to aid in selection and breeding (Williams, 2005). The fundamental reason why MAS, that only further uses a few markers as a selection tool, hasn’t made as much progress as was initially anticipated is that finding trustworthy markers is challenging, particularly when dealing with complex traits. Only relatively few consistent markers could be identified, despite successful identification of many quantitative trait loci (QTL; Hu and Reecy, 2007)

Biostatistics is a branch of statistics that focuses on the analysis and interpretation of data from biological and health-related research studies. It involves the application of statistical methods to design, collect, analyze, and interpret data from studies involving living organisms like: animals, birds including human beings. Biostatistics plays a crucial role in public health, medicine, epidemiology, genetics, and other related fields.

With the increasing availability of data and advancements in biostatistics, breeders can expect further improvements in breeding practices that will results in better outcomes for both livestock farmers and the animals they breed. Animal breeding is a crucial aspect of agriculture and food production, as it helps to improve the quality and quantity of animal products as well ensuring food security to the masses.

The term “artificial intelligence” (AI) refers to a wide variety of theories and technologies that are used to the resolution of issues characterized by a high level of logical or algorithmic complexity. It cuts across a wide range of f ields, such as mechanical modeling, software engineering, data science, and statistics. Many artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, which first appeared in the 1950s, have lately been refined or extended thanks to advances in computer performance. Recent advancements have been made possible by the creation of interfaces between artificial intelligence and other fields of study, such as biomedicine, and by the collection of enormous amounts of data from a variety of fields, notably those related with the healthcare industry. First, Artificial intelligence helps with situational awareness, which is relevant in animal health and animal husbandry because it allows for the detection of patterns like repeated sequences of observations, forms like a protein, and signals like increased mortality especially in comparison to a baseline at various scales. A third option is computer-based decision making, or more practically, human decision support via knowledge - based systems, diagnostic support, and resource allocation, for instance.

Biomimetics is defined as the study of the formation, structure, or function of biologically produced substances and materials and biological mechanisms and processes especially to synthesize similar products by artificial mechanisms which mimic natural ones.

Biomimetic materials and molecules have been applied in many of the potential research areas in medical and dental sciences and highlight their foundation from plants, animals, or microbes that can be used to treat human disease.

A bioactive/biomimetic material and biocompatible material is an artificial or natural material used to change part of the living system or to function in internal contact with living tissue. Bioactive materials can interact with living tissues or systems.

There are several types of biomimetic materials like

Osteogenic Materials

Osteoconductive Materials

In the past, there was no targeted development of biomaterial based on scientific criteria. Instead devices consisting of material that had been designed, synthesized and fabricated for various industrial needs (the textile, aerospace, and defense industries) were tested in a trial and error fashion in the bodies of humans and animals. These unplanned and sporadic attempts had modest success. Most frequently, the results were unpredictable, mixed, and confounding both in success and in failure. In addition to traditional medical devices, diagnostic products, pharmaceutical preparations and healthcare disposables, now the list of biomaterial application includes smart delivery systems for drugs, tissue cultures, engineered tissues and hybrid organs. Undoubtedly biomaterial have had major impact on the practice of contemporary medicine and patient care in both saving and improving the quality of lives of the humans and animals4.

The craniofacial region presents a unique challenge for implantable biomaterials because the pull of the craniofacial muscles produces variable loading in different regions. In addition, craniofacial skin loses elasticity with the age and develops subcutaneous tissue sags.

Even though surgeons are familiar with the use autogenous bone grafts for craniofacial reconstruction, the usage of alloplastic bone substitutes has increased continuously, because autogenous bone is difficult to harvest, time consuming, causes significant donor morbidity, and bone resorption, but most important thing is that the biocompatibility of current alloplastic materials are improving.

Synthetic substitute creates a new avenue for clinicians to explore as adjunct in surgical procedures. These materials may not necessarily be used solely for reconstructive procedures, but when used in the right situation in combination with autologous, allograft or other synthetic, the result have the potential for more desirable results.

1. Jefferies SR. 2014. Bioactive and biomimetic restorative materials: a comprehensive review. Part I. J Esthet Restor Dent. 26(1):14-26.

2. Sharma M, Murray PE, Sharma D, Parmar K, Gupta S, Goyal P. 2013. Modern approaches to use bioactive materials and molecules in medical and dental treatments. Int J Curr.Microbiol. App. Sci., 2(11):429-39.

3. Laskin Daniel M: Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery vol 1

4. Kay C. Dee, David A. Puleo, Bizios R. 2002. An Introduction to Tissue Biomaterial Interactions.

5. Peltola MJ, Vallittu PK, Vuorinen V, Aho AA, Puntala A, Aitasalo KM. 2012. Novel composite implant in craniofacial bone reconstruction. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 269(2):623-8

6. Kao ST, Scott DD. 2007. A review of bone substitutes. Oral Maxillofac Surg Clin North Am. 19(4):513-21, vi.

7. Nasr HF, Aichelmann-Reidy ME, Yukna RA. 1999. Bone and bone substitutes. Periodontol 2000. 19:74-86.

Arthropod life began very early in Palaeozoic region, about 600 million years ago in the sea. The arthropod foundations were laid with the evolution of metamerism in segmented worms, and in the ancestral arthropods it resembled the now extinct Trilobites. They had harder cuticle forming the exoskeleton and a pair of jointed legs with each of its metameric segments.

The Trilobite stock soon diversified into:

a) Chelicerates.

b) Mandibulates.

a) Chelicerates: In Chelicerates, the anterior body segments fused to form the prosoma, bearing a pair of chelicerae, the feeding organs; a pair of pedipalps and four pairs of walking legs. The remaining segments formed the legless opisthosoma. This gave rise to Eurypterids (Extinct) Xiphosurians, Pycnogonids and the highly successful Arachnids, including the scorpions, spiders, ticks and mites.

Origin of Systematics

In Vedas (1500 BC), Ramayana (1900 BC), Mahabharata (1400 BC), and Upanishad (350 BC) mention had been made about various animals. The number of known species of animals is much greater than that of plants and has been estimated at about more than one million. When subspecies are included, the number may double to more than two million named forms of animals. The new animals are being described at the rate of about 10,000 per year. Metcalf (1940) estimated that one and a half million species names are already applied while Silvestre (1929) calculates an estimated 3 million probable species of insects.

Systematics

Systematics is a term coined by a Swedish naturalist Linnaeus (Systema Naturae 1735) which is a Latinized Greek word Systema, as applied to the systems of classification. According to Simpson, “Systematics is the scientific study of the kinds and diversity of organisms and any or all relationships among them.” It includes Taxonomy, identification, classification and nomenclature. Now-a-days, both terms are used inter-changeably in the fields of plant and animal classification.

Arthropods occur up to the height of over 6,080 meters on land and up to the depth of about 59,728 meters in water. Different arthropod species are adapted for living in air, on land, in soil and in fresh, brackish or salt water.

Many insects are economically important for being pests of crops, stored grains, stored food, household goods and clothing etc. Some insects and arachnids are in one way or the other responsible for certain diseases of crops, domestic animals and human beings. Some arthropods, on the other hand, such as crabs, lobsters, prawns and shrimps form a part of human diet while, small sized crustaceans are staple food for fishes. Many parts of the world have witnessed some insects and spiders eaten by many land animals including man.

Insects share many characters with other arthropods, but the other arthropods have not been able to exploit these to the extent insects have evolved. The presence of functional wings is a very important character which insects do not share with other arthropods, that is why insects have distinct advantage over other arthropods in their struggle for existence and dominance. A comparative account of Insecta and other arthropod classes is given in Table 1.

Origin of Insects

Insects are highly specialized group of invertebrates belonging to the largest animal Phyla, the ARTHROPODA, which also includes in it, the prawns, crabs, lobsters, centipedes, millipedes, scorpions, ticks, mites and spiders. Practically three fourth of the animal species come under this phylum.

The Arthropods evolved during Cambrian period from primitive annelidan ancestor. The main evolutionary stem of Arthropod is represented by the Crustacia- Insecta- Myriapoda.

The insects originated in the Devonian period of Palaeozoic era. Diplura and Thysanura are the most primitive wingless insects while mayflies, damselflies, dragonflies and stoneflies represent the primitive winged insects.

Evolution

Evolution is a process whereby population are altered over a period of time and may split into separate branches, hybridize together or terminate by extinction.

Nomenclature should not be confused with terminology which deals with terms, like antenna, abdomen, radius etc. Names of animal and plants may be either vernacular or scientific.

Vernacular names or local names of plants and animals are different from region to region, from language to language.

Scientific names or Latin or International names are used universally all over the world. Without them we would not be able to communicate and to use the knowledge accumulated about animals and plants in literature. These international names are under certain rules or nomenclature.

Nomenclature

No-men-cla-ture means a system of names. It is derived from Latin Nomen means name and calor means to call, which means to call by names. Nomenclature is the “language of Zoology” and the rules of nomenclature are its grammar. Since all zoologists work with animals and used their names, it is essential that the general principles of zoological nomenclature be familiar to all zoologists.

Classification

Classification is ordering of organisms into groups (or sets) on the basis of their relationships that are of associations by contiguity, similarity or both.

Classification of living things is an attempt to interpret nature. It attempts to bring together the kinds that are alike and closely related and to separate those that are unlike and unrelated.

Animals might be classified in various ways but the classification is based primarily on structural characters. Those animals with certain structures in common are classified into one group, and those with other structures into other group. Thus the animal kingdom is divided into a dozen or so major groups called phyla (singular, phylum); each phylum has a name, and its members have certain structural characters in common. The characters used to distinguish phyla include the number of cells, symmetry, body form and segmentation, the nature of the appendages, and the arrangement of the internal organs.

On the basis of degree of complexity, and probably evolutionary sequence, the animal phyla are usually arranged in a series from the lower phyla to the higher ones.

The foundation of modern insect classification was laid by Brauer in 1885. According to Brauer insects were classified as Subclass: Apterygogenea (pterous) and Pterygogenea (winged) based on:

• Presence or absence of wings.

• Mouthparts.

• Metamorphosis.

• Number of Malpighian tubules.

• The nature of wings.

• Thoracic segments etc.

The earliest classification of insects was based on habits and habitats and on certain gross anatomical features that define the general aspects of different kinds. In classifying insects, not only anatomical characters but also facts pertaining to physiology, biology, distribution, ecology and sometime cytology of the species is taken into consideration.

Origin of systematics is as old as Vedas (1500 BC), Ramayana (1900 BC), Mahabharat (1400 BC) and Upanisad (350 BC) in which mention had been made about various animals.

History of Insect Classification

Linnaeus (1758-1766) in the 12th edition of Systema Naturae, divided insects into 9 orders

1. Coleoptera (earwigs – Dermeptera).

2. Orthoptera.

3. Hemiptera.

4. Lepidoptera.

5. Neuroptera (ant lion, Sialis, termites and dragon flies).

6. Hymenoptera

7. Diptera.

8. Thysanoptera.

9. Aptera (wingless insects, spiders, scorpions, terrestrial crustacians and Myriapods).

The science of taxonomy started with Linnaeus, who used two Latin names for an organism by a universally agreed name and identity, and further provided means for their realistic classification. These identifications and classifications got strengthened further with accumulated biological knowledge. In the recent times taxonomy has become more demanding subject for areas in entomology, which are dependent on access to accumulated experience and knowledge for their survival and development. By providing name and classifying an insect, taxonomy provides information on the nature of population, life cycle, habitat and behaviour and thereby developing hypotheses, concepts and theories, which are basic to biological control. In addition, it enables comparison and synthesis, all of which lead to refinement and fine tuning of the concepts and theories for identification.

Man has tendency to classify everything in a hierarchical manner for example, ships may be classified on size, weight, what they carry or naval versus merchant or passenger. Any of these classification is as valid as any other.

But classification of biological species is unusual in that a predefined system exists i.e. the evolutionary relationships among organisms. But evolutionary relationships can only be estimated; and contrary to popular belief, even a good fossil record does not conclusively show the phylogeny or evolutionary tree of a group species.

Numerical taxonomy can be defined as “Numerical evaluation of the affinity or similarity between taxonomic units and ordering of these units into taxa on the basis of their affinities”. The term includes drawing of phylogenetic inferences from the data by statistical or other mathematical methods to the extent to which this should prove possible. The practice involves a number of fundamental assumptions and philosophical attitudes toward taxonomic work.

The Species Concept in Systematics

The modern biological or, more strictly, genetical concept of a species is a group of interbreeding organisms, genetically isolated from other such groups. The definition of the category species has long been one of the major problems of taxonomy. It is because of two reasons:

1. Because of the congruity of lingering typological concepts with the nature of evolving species.

2. Because evolutionary species may have changing characters and are only gradually differentiated in phylogeny.

For evolutionary study and descriptive purposes, many kinds of variation within species come in to consideration, but the only regular intra specific taxon is the subspecies. Subspecies are widely but not universally useful and their definitions yield to the same sort of criteria as for dividing other phylogentic continuance.

Super Species

According to Mayr (1931, 1942) Linsleg and Usinger (1953),“A super Species is a monophyletic group of very closely related and largely or entirely allopatric Species”.

Super species are, in other words, groups of populations that seem on other grounds (morphology, ecology etc.) to have passed beyond the point of potential interbreeding and to have acquired separate evolutionary roles. They are so by the more conclusive evidence of remaining separate when sympatric. It is to be assumed that they are still near the critical point of specification, near a definitive isolation. They are nascent species that will, if they survive, collectively form a subgenus or eventually a genus but have hardly get reached that degree of divergence.

They are not given special names; the Rules of Nomenclature make no provision for that usual designation and they are mostly known by the name of an included species and are in fact super species.

Identification of the insects is the integral part of systematics. It utilises all taxonomic procedures. The collections in the world are the accumulation of past taxonomists and are stored for the future identifications. Every species name is based on a published description or figure and usually on the type specimen. Identification is the association of other specimens with the appropriate description or with type specimen.

The steps in identification are as follows:

1. Preliminary key to orders and families

2. Key to genera and species if recent monographs or faunal works are available

3. Reference to the most recent catalogues

4. Reference to current bibliographies for literature published subsequent to the most recent catalogues

5. Reference to original descriptions

6. Comparison with the authentic described specimens or with types.

Taxonomic keys are devices that make identification of taxa easy and enjoyable. A key is presentation of appropriate diagnostic characters in a series of attractive choices to facilitate identification of a specimen.

Key characters are the characters that are easily perceived of very low variability, usually present in preserved material. They are useful as convenient labels for distinguishing taxa by the process of classification. Many taxonomic characters such as chemical, chromosomal, physiological and behavioural may have high value of identification because they are inaccessible in preserved material. Ideal key characters apply equally to all individuals of the population. They are absolute, relatively constant and external so that they can be observed directly without special equipment.

Code of Ethics was observed by International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature for renaming of homonyms. The commission had issues declarations or opinions from time to time, which together constitute the start of a code of ethics in the field of nomenclature. The first Declaration of the international Commission was as follows:

• When it is noticed by any zoologist that the generic name or specific name published by any living author as new is in reality a homonym, and therefore unavailable under articles 34 and 36 of the Rules of Nomenclature, the action is for said person to notify the said author of the facts, and give said author an opportunity to propose a substitute name.

• When the author of a newly discovered generic or specific homonym is dead, the discoverer is free to rename the genus or species as he likes. It is common practice to rename the category after the author of the homonym. However, this practice was never universal and it is not a matter of ethics.

Classification involves grouping organisms into a series of hierarchical categories. Actual method of establishing a classification consists in defining groups or categories on a hierarchical scale. The animals can be classified in a taxonomic hierarchy consisting of a series of categories of ascending ranks from species to kingdom. Each of these categories includes one or more groups from the next lower level. Therefore, all animals can be classified in a taxonomic hierarchy consisting a series of categories in ascending order from species to kingdom such as species, genus, family, order, class, phylum and kingdom.

According to the history of biological classification, Aristotle, a Greek philosopher classified different animals based on the habitat, characteristics etc. Later Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus introduced taxonomic hierarchy categories during 18th century and this system is followed globally.

Taxonomic hierarchy refers to the sequence of categories in increasing or decreasing order. Kingdom is the highest rank and species is the lowest rank in hierarchy. Taxonomic hierarchy is the process of arranging various organisms into successive levels of biological classification. Each of the level of the hierarchy is called taxonomic category or rank.

Palaeontology is the science that deals with the life past geological periods. It is just the opposite of neontology which deals with the systematics of recent organisms. Fossils are the remains or parts of animal or plants that lived thousands of years ago which have turned into rock. They are preserved traces of living organisms in the earth crust.

Fossil History of Insects

Occurrence of insects in fossilised state provides a clear idea of the main order of insects. The oldest known insects’ fossil appears to be of Apterygota and blattids seem to be the oldest living insects, which have almost lived without undergoing large scale evolutionary changes from the Carboniferous to the present day.

Some of the earliest apterygotes might have developed from the Permian or lower Carboniferous. The richest collection of fossil insects is from the vegetable deposits like coal, lignite peats and in amber entangled in the raisin. Most of the insects are known only through their wings, resulting in the study of venation. However, the amber fossil of Miocene presents a clearer picture. The best known epoch is undoubtedly the Permian while Triassic provides richest discoveries of the insect fossils.

The study of science is incomplete, if it is not made available to others. The most popular way to make the work wide circulated is through publication. It is most important for taxonomists that what is most needed in the world about their work, is to be published in time. In taxonomy, the publications may be in the form of book, pamphlets, journals, articles, scientific papers, symposium chapters, catalogues and check-lists etc. A taxonomist should publish his work in appropriate journals like population studies or biological studies etc. It should be mentioned in the title if the new research is published. Sometimes, new taxa of one country are included in the faunal work of another country without mention in the title about the country. This is bound to remain out of knowledge for future works. The major types of taxonomic publications are as follows:

Publication of New Taxa

These are ordinary descriptive papers of new taxa such as subspecies and genera. Such descriptions do not involve careful comparison of all related species. The published descriptions may be justified only when the names of the taxa are required for biological or economic works. These are also helpful in revision of any work where the new species can be easily fitted in the classification. In addition to this, short communications concerning with new records of various taxa are also quite useful.

Hybridisation

Hybridisation occurs when two species cross to form a new species. If they are named before their hybrid nature has become apparent, the names would become invalid as soon as the hybridity of the specimen has been established.

Hybridism can be of three types:

1. Sympatric Hybridisation

When individuals in two regions overlap in an otherwise well-defined species, they are called sympatric hybridisation. This is common in bird of paradise and humming birds. This hybridisation is listed as cross of two parental species.

Insects are present everywhere. In the world where life is possible, insects can be found. To begin with, it is not necessary to go to distant places. Insects can be collected from garden, cultivated fields or even in our house. For the collection of insects, we must have some idea of the following:

1. How they live.

2. What they require at different stages of life.

A. Complete Metamorphosis

There are four stages

A database is a collection of data, typically describing the activities of one or more related organisations. Biological database is meant for storing and organising biological data, collecting information from life sciences, scientific experiments, computational analysis and contents from published literatures.

Biological databases play a vital role in bioinformatics, since it helps varieties of researchers to access and analyse data from different parts of the world. The knowledge obtained helps to solve disease oriented and environment related issues and to make vital policy decisions. Biological databases remain as tool to identify insect species as well as in comparing their relationships with related species. The biological knowledge distributed among different general and specialised databases, can be retrieved with efficient queries.

Various information like genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, microarray, genes expression, phylogenetics etc. are also stored and maintained as biological databases in terms of genome databases, protein structure databases, taxonomic database etc. These computerised web databases facilitate effective data management and analysis help in knowledge transmission, make coherent information exchange between the studies and public audience.

Previous Year Questions
1. How has food production, incuding  horticultural crops, changed in  India during the last one decade? Write down its impact on food and nutritional security (20 marks, CSE 2023)
2. What is the food production and consumption pattern of India in the last fifty years? (15M, CSE 2021) 
3. Describe food grain production and consumption trends in India (7.5M, CSE 2019) 
4. Food production and consumption trends in India (12.5M, CSE 2015)

Previous Year Questions

1. CS 2015: Discuss the impact of rapid increase in population on food and agriculture (12.5 marks)

What is Food security?

The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) – “when all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”.

It has Following Dimensions

• Availability: It means food production within the country, food imports and the stock stored in government granaries.

Previous Year Questions

1. Discuss the reasons for food grain surplus (7.5 marks, CSE 2019)

2. What are the reasons for good grain surplus in India? Write the steps taken by the government to save the food grains. (12.5M, CSE 2015)

Reason for Grain Surplus

Green Revolution

• Introduction of high yielding varieties of Rice and Wheat

• Green Revolution was made possible through the use of

Previous Year Questions

1. Write down the various programmes run by state & central govts for ensuring food security in our country. Briefly discuss the strategies for sustainable agricultural production (20M, CSE 2023)

2. How will national food policy help in sustainable food security? (CSE 2020, 10 marks)

3. Discuss the national initiatives for food and nutrition security. (8M, IFoS-2019)

4. What are the special schemes for providing food grains to underprivileged, destitutes and malnourished populations (CSE 2016, 12.5 marks)

5. National and international food policies. (10M, IFoS-2016)

Previous Year Questions

1. Write down the constraints of fruit processing industry in India (10M, CSE 2023)

2. Enlist & Explain the issues & challenges in the growth of food processing industry in India (10M, CSE 2022)

3. Give a detailed account of constraints in sustaining the food-grain production in India. (10M, IFoS 2020)

4. What are the major constraints of food production in India (10 mark, CSE 2020)

5. Describe the food production constraints in Indian agricultural system. (15M, IFoS-2018)

6. Indicate the major constraints in food procurement and distribution. (10M, CSE 2017)

7. Discuss the procurement and processing constraints of food grain. (15M, IFoS-2017)

Previous Year Questions

1. No questions were asked in past 10 years

Availability of Foodgrains

• Net availability of foodgrains = Gross Production (-) seed, feed & wastage, (-) exports imports (+/-) change in stocks.

Previous Year Questions

1. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of Public Food Distribution system in India. (8M, IFoS-2022)

2. Describe the vicious cycle of poverty and enlist the existing policy instruments for combating malnutrition. (20M, CSE 2022)

3. Enlist and explain the efforts of the GOI in streamlining the current levels of poverty (10 marks, CS 2022)

4. Enlist and explain the salient features of Public Distribution System as per the provisions of the National Food Security Act, 2013. (10M, CSE 2022)

5. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of public food-grain distribution system in India. (8M, IFoS 2020)

Previous Year Questions

1. What are the different ‘National Dietary Guidelines’ of India? What is your opinion on balanced diet of Indians? (20M, CSE 2021)

2. Classify foods on the basis of their function. Write down a balanced diet for a sedentary man & woman in India (10M, CS 2023)

National Dietary Guidelines

Recommended dietary allowance (RDA) is defined as “the nutrient present in the diet which satisfies the daily requirement of nearly all individuals in a population”.