New studies have cast doubt on commonly used methods to determine evolutionary rates, i.e. the timespan required for mutations in DNA to occur.
Typical results of phylogenetics (the study of evolutionary history) places the timeframe for DNA mutation in terms of millions of years. However, a recent study of a well-documented pedigree of chickens has revealed two mutations occurring within the space of 50 years.
The selective mating programme for a population of White Plymouth Chickens began at Virginia Tech in 1957, resulting in a tenfold increase in size in one of the groups. The two mutated genes identified had not yet been detected in chickens, but exist in other birds. While both mutations were found only in the low-weight group,
