The Florida Cracker or Florida Scrub is an American

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 ...

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 mal ...

which originated in

Spanish Florida Spanish Florida ( es, La Florida) was the first major European land claim and attempted settlement in North America during the European Age of Discovery. ''La Florida'' formed part of the Captaincy General of Cuba, the Viceroyalty of New Spain, ...

and later in the American state of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. It is named for the

Florida cracker Florida crackers were colonial-era British and American pioneer settlers in what is now the U.S. state of Florida; the term is also applied to their descendants, to the present day, and their subculture among white Southerners. The first cracker ...

culture in which it was kept. It is one of the

Criollo Criollo or criolla (Spanish for creole) may refer to: People * Criollo people, a social class in the Spanish race-based colonial caste system (the European descendants) Animals * Criollo duck, a species of duck native to Central and South Ameri ...

breeds that descend from the Spanish cattle originally brought to the Americas by the Spanish

Conquistadors Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...

; among the other North American breeds in this group are the Pineywoods, the

Corriente Corriente cattle are a breed of Criollo cattle descended from Spanish animals brought to the Americas as early as 1493. They are primarily used today as sport cattle for rodeo events such as team roping and bulldogging (steer wrestling). Some bree ...

and

Texas Longhorn The Texas Longhorn is an American list of cattle breeds, breed of beef cattle, characterized by its long horns, which can span more than from tip to tip. It derives from cattle brought from the Iberian Peninsula to the Americas by Spanish con ...

. Unlike the Pineywoods – to which it is closely related – the Florida Cracker has not been inter-bred with breeds of North European origin.

History

The Florida Cracker, like other

Criollo cattle ''Criollo'' (or Creole) is a group of cattle breeds descended from Iberian stock imported to the Americas, including among othersMason, Ian Lauder: ''A world dictionary of livestock breeds, types and varieties.'' 4th edition. CAD International, Wa ...

, derives from cattle brought by the

Conquistadores Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to ...

from Spain to the Americas from 1493 onwards; these numbered no more than 300 head in all, and were brought to

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

and other Caribbean islands. Cattle from

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

were landed in

in 1565, and there was another shipment from the same source in 1640. By the beginning of the eighteenth century the total number of cattle in the Spanish part of what is now the United States – Florida and parts of modern

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

– was estimated at between and head. These were triple-purpose cattle, reared for meat, for milk and for draft work. They were managed extensively, living in

semi-feral A semi-feral animal lives predominantly in a feral state but has some contact and experience with humans. This may be because it was born in a domesticated state and then reverted to life in wild conditions, or it may be an animal that grew up in ...

conditions for much of the time. After 1949 the combination of new laws about free-roaming livestock and the introduction of larger beef breeds led to the rapid decline of the Florida Cracker. Despite the continued work of the Florida state government and a breed association, the breed is still listed as "critical" by

The Livestock Conservancy The Livestock Conservancy, formerly known as the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (ALBC) and prior to that, the American Minor Breeds Conservancy, is a nonprofit organization focused on preserving and promoting rare breeds, also known as "h ...

, and is listed on

Ark of Taste The Ark of Taste is an international catalogue of endangered heritage foods which is maintained by the global Slow Food movement. The Ark is designed to preserve at-risk foods that are sustainably produced, unique in taste, and part of a distinct ...

of the

Slow Food Foundation Slow Food is an organization that promotes local food and traditional cooking. It was founded by Carlo Petrini in Italy in 1986 and has since spread worldwide. Promoted as an alternative to fast food, it strives to preserve traditional and reg ...

. In 2018 it was named the official state heritage cattle breed.

Characteristics

Florida Cracker cows are one of the oldest and rarest breeds of cattle in United States. Descended from Spanish stock imported to the continent in the sixteenth century, Florida Crackers cows are a small, horned breed that quickly adapted to the Florida landscape and have long been prized for their resistance to parasites and other hardy traits. They weigh generally under 900 pounds (400 kg), come in many colors, and both males and females are horned.

References

Cattle breeds originating in the United States Cattle breeds Cattle landraces Conservation Priority Breeds of the Livestock Conservancy Florida cracker culture Symbols of Florida {{cattle-stub