DOMINANT BLACK IN HORSES

The existence of dominant black in horses is supported by a black stal lion 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 f rom chestnut mares. This allele is suggested as being dominant black, E-D, at the Extension locus. This allele does not always cause complet ely eumelanic phenotypes, since some offspring (which were heterozygou s) were near black rather than completely black. The dam of this stall ion was of a near black or brown, rather than black, phenotype. The si re of this stallion was black. Foals were sometimes born a color close to that of bay foals, but these ultimately turned completely or nearl y black at maturity.