The Drakensberger is a South African breed of

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

. It is a dual-purpose breed, reared both for milk and for meat. Its origins go back to the early nineteenth century, to the time of the

Great Trek The Great Trek ( af, Die Groot Trek; nl, De Grote Trek) was a Northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyon ...

or earlier, when imported European stock from Holland with was

cross-bred 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 ...

with black cattle of Sanga type obtained from nomadic pastoralist

Khoikhoi Khoekhoen (singular Khoekhoe) (or Khoikhoi in the former orthography; formerly also '' Hottentots''"Hottentot, n. and adj." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, March 2018, www.oed.com/view/Entry/88829. Accessed 13 May 2018. Citing G. S. ...

peoples. It is one of several successful African composite breeds of Sanga and European stock. In the early days it was selected for adaptation to the

sourveld Veld ( or ), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in :Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Bot ...

biome of South Africa, and for black colour; it was kept principally along the

Drakensberg The Drakensberg (Afrikaans: Drakensberge, Zulu: uKhahlambha, Sotho: Maluti) is the eastern portion of the Great Escarpment, which encloses the central Southern African plateau. The Great Escarpment reaches its greatest elevation – within t ...

escarpment, which gave rise to its modern name. It was established as a breed with the formation of the Drakensberger Cattle Breeders' Society in 1947.}

History

The origins of the Drakensberger go back to the early nineteenth century, to the time of the

or earlier, when imported European stock from Holland with was

with black cattle of Sanga type obtained from nomadic pastoralist

peoples. These cross-breeds developed into a type or breed known as the Vaderlander; there was some

selection Selection may refer to: Science * Selection (biology), also called natural selection, selection in evolution ** Sex selection, in genetics ** Mate selection, in mating ** Sexual selection in humans, in human sexuality ** Human mating strateg ...

both for black colour and for adaptation to the

biome of South Africa.

Characteristics

Use

References

{{reflist, refs= Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007)
List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources
annex t
''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture''
Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{isbn, 9789251057629. Archived 23 June 2020. 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: Drakensberger / South Africa (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2022. Transboundary breed: Drakensberger
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2022. ational Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Council(June 2006)
''South African Country Report on Farm Animal Genetic Resources''
Pretoria: Department of Agriculture. Annex to: Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007)
''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture''
Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{isbn, 9789251057629. Archived 10 January 2017. Marleen Felius (1995)
''Cattle Breeds: An Encyclopedia''
Doetinchem, Netherlands: Misset. {{isbn, 9789054390176. Origin and History
Drakensberger Breeders' Society of South Africa. Accessed July 2022. Cattle breeds originating in South Africa Cattle breeds