Pedigree, << PEHD uh gree, >> is a record of the ancestors of an animal or plant. To be most useful, a pedigree should record traits (characteristics) of the ancestors as well as their names and their birth and death dates. Breeders use pedigree information to predict such traits as size, strength, and color of hair in offspring. This information is considered so important in the improvement of livestock that breeders’ associations have been formed to record the pedigrees of animals used for breeding. These animals are then said to be registered.
Pedigrees of plants are also helpful. But they are usually made for groups rather than individual plants. Hybrid corn breeders are careful to select and preserve known pedigree lines (families) of corn. Records of human ancestry are sometimes called family trees. The study of some family pedigrees enables scientists to predict the inheritance of certain diseases and physical defects. See Genealogy .
