The Grand Noir du Berry, french: Âne grand noir du Berry, italic=no, is a breed of

domestic donkey The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...

from the historic region of Berry, in central France. It is particularly associated with the town of Lignières and neighbouring areas of the

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety ...

s of Cher and Indre. It is found mostly in those départements and in those of

Nièvre Nièvre () is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, central-east France. Named after the river Nièvre, it had a population of 204,452 in 2019.Allier, but is distributed through much of central and northern France. It was in the past used both for in agricultural work, particularly in

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineya ...

s, and for

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

haulage on the canals of the area. The breed was recognised by the Ministère de l'Agriculture, the French ministry of agriculture, in 1994. The

stud book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

is kept by the breeders' association, the Association Française de l'Âne Grand Noir du Berry.

History

The origins of the Grand Noir du Berry are unknown. It has been variously suggested that it was influenced by imports of donkeys from

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

in the 1850s, or that it descends from

Catalan donkey The Catalan donkey ( ca, Ase Català, italic=yes or , es, Asno Catalán, italic=yes) is a breed of large domestic donkeys from the historic region of Catalonia, now in north-eastern Spain and south-western France. Approximately 80% of the b ...

s brought to the area by itinerant

Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sig ...

. From the early twentieth century onwards there is ample documentation in photographs of its use in agriculture, in harness and for barge haulage. A breeders' association, the Association Française de l'Âne Grand Noir du Berry, was formed in 1993 and in January 1994 the breed was officially recognised by the agriculture ministry and the

Haras Nationaux The Haras Nationaux in France (English literal translation ''national stud farms'') was the French national public administrative body responsible for the regulation and administration of breeding of horses and donkeys in France. It administere ...

. The association maintains the stud book for the breed. In 1994 there were 100 animals registered in the stud book; the current population is about 1300.

Characteristics

Grand Noir du Berry jacks measure , and jennies a minimum of The coat is black, with or without ''

pangaré Pangaré is a coat trait found in some horses that features pale hair around the eyes and muzzle and underside of the body. These pale areas can extend up to the flanks, throat and chest, behind the elbows, in front of the stifle, and up the b ...

'' markings. There is no dorsal stripe, shoulder-stripe or zebra-striping of the legs. The lower part of the muzzle is pale grey, as is the belly.

Use

The Grand Noir du Berry was in the past used in agricultural work, particularly in vineyards, and for light agricultural draught work; from about 1850 it was also used to draw barges on the

Canal de Berry The Canal de Berry is a disused canal in France which links the Canal latéral à la Loire at Marseilles-lès-Aubigny with the Cher at Noyers rejoining the Loire near Tours. With a branch from Montluçon it provided of canal with locks wide f ...

and other canals of the region, work that had previously been done by men. Today it may be used as a pack animal for hiking or trekking, or for recreational

driving Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to f ...

; jacks may be used to sire mules.

References

{{Donkey breeds of France Donkey breeds Donkey breeds originating in France History of Centre-Val de Loire