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Cattle
White Park
Watchlist; Category 5, Minority.
The White Park is the most ancient breed of cattle native to the British Isles. Cattle of this type were recorded in the 5th century AD in Wales, and featured much earlier in Irish folklore epics, such as Tain Bo Culagne. In the 13th century herds of “wild white beasts” were enclosed in parks in England and Scotland, and some of these herds remain in existence today.
At the onset of World War II a number of animals were transported to North America and maintained on the King Ranch in Texas in order to “preserve part of the national heritage”.
The White Park is a thrifty, healthy, adaptable animal noted for its ease of calving and longevity with both bulls and cows regularly still breeding at sixteen years of age. The White Park has good growth rates and the carcase is large and lean with low levels of back fat. Its well-marbled beef is of high quality, and was the original 'Sir Loin'. It is now a specialist beef breed, but is adaptable and thrives in a variety of conditions when used for conservation grazing, and also remains a decorative, parkland breed. The coat is white with coloured ears, muzzle, eyelids, feet and teats. The most common colour pointing is black although in some animals it can be red. The horns are of middle length growing outwards, forwards and upwards.