The Speckle Park is a modern Canadian

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

beef cattle Beef cattle are cattle raised for meat production (as distinguished from dairy cattle, used for milk production). The meat of mature or almost mature cattle is mostly known as beef. In beef production there are three main stages: cow-calf operat ...

. It was developed in the Canadian province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

from 1959, by

cross-breeding A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. ''Crossbreeding'', sometimes called "designer crossbreeding", is the process of breeding such an organism, While crossbreeding is used to main ...

stock of the British

Aberdeen Angus The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scottish breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine and Angus in north-eastern Scotland. In 2018 the breed accounted for over 17 ...

and

Shorthorn The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late eighteenth century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always emp ...

breeds; the spotted or speckled pattern for which it is named derived from a single bull with the colour-pointed markings of the British

White Park White Park may refer to: ;Places: * White Park Bay, in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, UK * White Park, County Antrim, a townland in Northern Ireland, UK * White Park (Concord, New Hampshire), a public park in Concord, New Hampshire, US * White P ...

. It is one of only a few

breeds developed in Canada. The Speckle Park was officially recognised as an 'evolving breed' in 1995, and received full 'distinct breed' recognition from the Canadian government in 2006. Some have been exported to Australia, to Ireland and to the United Kingdom. Numbers are low, and in Canada it is an

endangered breed In modern agriculture, a rare breed is a breed of poultry or livestock that has a very small breeding population, usually from a few hundred to a few thousand. Because of their small numbers, rare breeds may have a threatened conservation status ...

History

The Speckle Park was developed in the Canadian province of

from 1959, by

stock of the British

and

breeds; the spotted or speckled pattern for which it is named derived from a single bull with the colour-pointed markings of the British

. A

breed association Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members o ...

, the Canadian Speckle Park Association, was formed in 1985. In 1995 the

byelaws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

of the association received ministerial approval and the Speckle Park was officially recognised as an 'evolving breed'. It received full 'distinct breed' recognition from the Canadian government in 2006. Some have been exported to Australia, to Ireland and to the United Kingdom. In 2020 the Canadian population of the cattle was reported to

DAD-IS DAD-IS is the acronym of the worldwide Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, within the FAO's management of animal genetic resources programme.Domestic Animal Diversity Infor ...

at just over 1400 head; in 2021 the

conservation status The conservation status of a group of organisms (for instance, a species) indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation ...

of the breed was reported as "at risk/endangered".

Characteristics

Canadian Speckle Park is so named because of the colour pattern of the cattle. They are most often

colour-sided Colour-sided or lineback is a type of fur pattern in domesticated cattle. It consists of any solid body colour (such as black, red, or brindle) with white finching along the spine, along the underbelly, and over the tail, head, and legs. The e ...

, black with white spine and underbelly, with speckling to the hips and shoulders. They may also be colour-pointed, white with black points (''i.e.'', black nose, ears and feet); or, less commonly, solid black.

References

{{reflist, refs= Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016)
''Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding''
(sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. {{ISBN, 9781780647944. Breed data sheet: Speckle Park / Canada (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2021. Breed data sheet: Speckle Park / Australia (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2021. Breed data sheet: Speckle Park / Ireland (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2021. Breed data sheet: Speckle Park / United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2021. Carol Ekarius (2008). ''Storey's Illustrated Breed Guide to Sheep, Goats, Cattle and Pigs''. North Adams, Massachusetts: Storey Publishing. {{isbn, 9781603420365 Kim Woods (28 January 2009)

''

The Weekly Times The Herald and Weekly Times Pty Ltd (HWT) is a newspaper publishing company based in Melbourne, Australia. It is owned and operated by News Pty Ltd, which as News Ltd, purchased the HWT in 1987. Newspapers The HWT's newspaper interests date b ...

''. Archived 6 July 2011. Cattle breeds Cattle breeds originating in Canada

History

Characteristics

See also

References