Artificial Selection and Domestication
Some believe that no species of raptor have been in captivity long enough to have undergone successful selective breeding for desired traits. Captive breeding of raptors over several generations tends to result, either deliberately, or inevitably as a result of captivity, in selection for certain traits, including:
- Ability to survive in captivity.
- Ability to breed in captivity.
- (In most cases) suitability for interactions with humans for falconry. Birds which demonstrated an unwillingness to hunt with men were most often discarded, rather than being placed in breeding projects.
- With gyrfalcons in areas away from their natural Arctic tundra habitat, better disease resistance.
- With gyrfalcons, feather color .
Read more about this topic: Falconry
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