Sayaguesa Cattle
 |
|
| Conservation status | FAO (2007): endangered-maintained |
|---|---|
| Other names |
|
| Country of origin | Spain |
| Distribution | Comarca of Sayago, Castilla y León |
| Standard | Consejería de Agricultura y Ganadería, Castilla y León |
| Use | formerly draught; now meat |
| Traits | |
| Weight |
|
| Height |
|
| Coat | black, some bleaching |
| Horn status | horned in both sexes |
|
|
The Sayaguesa is an endangered Spanish breed of domestic cattle. It is named for the comarca of Sayago in the province of Zamora, in the western part of the autonomous community of Castile and León, and is raised almost exclusively in that area. It may also be known as the Zamorana, the Moles de Sayago or the Castellana variedad Sayaguesa. It was traditionally kept mainly for draught work, but is now raised principally for meat.
The Sayaguesa was traditionally kept mainly for draught work; with the mechanisation of agriculture following the Second World War, this use declined. In the 1960s there were successive attempts to improve productive qualities by cross-breeding with Friesian, Braunvieh and Charolais, and later with other breeds. From 1970 the Sayaguesa was included with other regional breeds under the denomination Morenas del Noroeste. In 1997 it achieved separate recognition among the breeds identified by the Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente, the Spanish ministry of agriculture, as "at risk of extinction". Registration of the Sayaguesa began in 1980, and in 1981 a breeders' association, the Asociación Española de Criadores de Ganado Bovino de Raza Sayaguesa, was formed. In 1998 a genealogical herd-book was established.
Between 1950 and 1981 the population of the Sayaguesa fell by about a quarter, or some 17000 head. By 2009 only about 450 head remained, in 29 farms. At the end of 2015 the population was 1612, of which almost all were in Castilla Léon.
...
Wikipedia