A brand-new number one bull headlines the daughter-proven Holstein sire list, published by AHDB Dairy.
Hurtgenlea Richard Charl not only graduates from the genomic list with flying colours, he also leaves a son in number one position amongst the young sires.
Charl himself is an early DG Charley son from a Yoder dam, and combines high milk yields (his Predicted Transmitting Ability for milk is 1162kg) with favourable maintenance feed costs (-15) and a Type Merit of 1.61. His Profitable Lifetime Index is £774.
Three further new graduates in the top 10 are led by second-placed De-Su 14222 Kenobi (PLI £758), a Jedi son with a good Calf Survival Index (CS +3), high PTA protein (38.1kg), and favourable calving ease (0.9).
ABS Crimson, a son of Spectre, is new in third position and transmits high fat (50.4 kg, +0.15%), long Lifespan Index (LS +128 days) and good CS (+3). His PLI is £739.
The final new entry ranks fourth, in the high daughter fertility Jaltaoak son, S-S-I PR Renegade. A daughter Fertility Index (FI) of 11.7 helps earn him a PLI of £735.
A former number one £PLI sire, Bomaz AltaTopshot (by Supershot), ranks fifth, now with 99% reliable production figures helping to earn him a PLI of £728.
Topshot-sired calves have shorter than average gestations (GL -5 days), while he transmits good Lameness Advantage (2.9) and long lifespans (LS +110 days).
Also former top 10 sires are Westcoast Yamaska (PLI £720), now in sixth position and transmitting favourable milk solids (+0.21% fat, +0.15% protein) and a good FI (9.1), and seventh-ranking Welcome Silver Griff (PLI £715).
Griff transmits the highest percentage fat in the top 10 (+0.25%), and is joined by his paternal half-brother, AOT Silver Helix, who moves up to eighth position.
Both sons of Seagull-Bay Silver, Helix transmits the more extreme production with a PTA 1273kg milk and 102.9kg combined fat plus protein.
Marco Winters, head of animal genetics for AHDB Dairy said: “Many bulls in the daughter-proven top 20 have endured for many years, despite the fast pace we now see in genetic improvement.
“These bulls continue to have a place in breeding strategies on many farms, where a track-record of predictable performance is highly valued.”
The top 10 is rounded off by two bulls which rank highly for the newly launched HealthyCow (£HC).
The first is former number one sire, Westcoast Guarantee, (PLI £706) offering superb udder health (-24 SCC, -4 Mastitis Index), high daughter fertility (FI 11.1) and fantastic Calf Survival (+3.2). These traits earn him an HC of £258.
Even more highly rated for HealthyCow is Seagull-Bay-MJ Applejax, now with a PLI of £700.
With nearly 3000 UK milking daughters, this high reliability bull scores a whopping £293 HealthyCow, reflecting his daughters’ outstanding fertility (FI 17.6) and good udder health.
Applejax also has the highest Type Merit in the top 10 (TM 1.92).
