Name Date

Reindeer Genetics Activity

Student Information
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
You are Santas new reindeer herd manager so there are a few things about reindeer genetics that you
should know. The species of reindeer that pulls Santas sleigh (Rangifer tarandus saintnicolas
magicalus) is very rare and they do not breed well in captivity so your job is an important one. All
reindeer born into Santas herd are genetically tested at birth so you will know their genotype (which
alleles they carry).
The allele for the flying gene is recessive. Only those animals that are homozygous recessive
(ff) will be able to fly.
All breeding stock is heterozygous (Ff). It has been discovered that homozygous recessive
animals (ff) are sterile.
Contrary to popular belief, Santas sleigh is only pulled by females. The males lose their antlers
in late fall or early winter and it really messes up their aerodynamics for the long Christmas Eve
haul.
Homozygous recessive (ff) males are put into the local stable to be used for pulling Mrs. Claus
and the elves on errands.
Reindeer that are born homozygous dominant (FF) are sold to petting zoos to help offset the
cost of keeping the herd. Females are sold for $200 and males for $150.
Only 20 calves are born into the herd each year, due to the low birthrate from being in captivity.

DIRECTIONS
1. Using the worksheet, you will flip a coin twice for each calf born into the herd this year. Every
animal has two alleles. They get one from their mother (their dam) and one from the father (their
sire). This is Mendels First Law (the Law of Segregation).
heads = F (non-flying allele)
tails = f (flying allele)
2. Then go down the list and flip a coin again to determine the gender of each calf. Mark the
resulting genetics for each offspring born this year.
heads for male
tails for female
3. Using each calfs genotype and their gender, write where they
will be sent in the next column.
sold (FF)
breeding (Ff)
sleigh team (ff - females)
local stable (ff - males)
4. Complete the results analysis section and answer the
questions at the bottom of the page.

2010 One Less Thing One Step Worksheets

Name Date

Reindeer Genetics Activity

INFORMATION SUMMARY
Alleles: Offspring: Destination:
F: non-flying (heads) FF: homozygous dominant sold to petting zoos
f: flying (tails) Ff: heterozygous breeding stock
female: tails ff: homozygous recessive females - sleigh team
male: heads males - local stable

OFFSPRING RESULTS
Genotype Gender Destination
1. ________ _____ _____________________
RESULTS ANALYSIS
2. ________ _____ _____________________ total # % of total
3. ________ _____ _____________________ sold to zoos ______ ______
4. ________ _____ _____________________ breeding stock ______ ______
5. ________ _____ _____________________
sleigh team ______ ______
6. ________ _____ _____________________
local stable ______ ______
7. ________ _____ _____________________
8. ________ _____ _____________________
females ______ ______
9. ________ _____ _____________________
10. ________ _____ _____________________ males ______ ______

11. ________ _____ _____________________

12. ________ _____ _____________________ money earned from animals sold:
13. ________ _____ _____________________ $_________
14. ________ _____ _____________________
15. ________ _____ _____________________
16. ________ _____ _____________________
17. ________ _____ _____________________
18. ________ _____ _____________________
19. ________ _____ _____________________
20. ________ _____ _____________________

THOUGHT QUESTIONS
1. According to Mendels Law of Independent Assortment, a heterozygous cross will produce 25%
homozygous dominant (FF), 50% heterozygous (Ff), and 25% homozygous recessive (ff) offspring. Calculate
the percentage of each that your herd produced.
FF: _____% Ff: _____% ff: _____%
How did your percentages compare to the predicted results?

2. A genotype is the actual alleles an individual carries which we are able to determine from genetic testing. A
phenotype is the outward physical characteristics of an individual. What is the percentage of this years
offspring with a non-flying phenotype?

2010 One Less Thing One Step Worksheets