The Camargue is a

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable 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 seve ...

of domestic

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...

native to the

Camargue The Camargue (, also , , ; ) is a coastal region in southern France located south of the city of Arles, between the Mediterranean Sea and the two arms of the Rhône river delta. The eastern arm is called the Grand Rhône; the western is the ''P ...

marshlands of the

river delta A river delta is a landform, archetypically triangular, created by the deposition of the sediments that are carried by the waters of a river, where the river merges with a body of slow-moving water or with a body of stagnant water. The creat ...

of the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

in southern France. It is used for the traditional sport of '' course camarguaise'', a kind of bloodless bull-fight, but not for the '' corrida'', Iberian-style bull-fighting. It is one of two cattle breeds raised 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 i ...

conditions in the Camargue; the other is the Brava or Race de Combat, a fighting breed. Since 1996, it has been officially known as the

Provençal Provençal may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Provence, a region of France ** Provençal dialect, a dialect of the Occitan language, spoken in the southeast of France ** ''Provençal'', meaning the whole Occitan language * Provenca ...

: Raço di Biòu.

History

The Raço di Biòu has long been raised in

conditions in the wetlands of the

, in the

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( ; , ; ; "the Mouths of the Rhône") is a Departments of France, department in southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var (department), Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the sout ...

in the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (commonly shortened to PACA), also known as Région Sud, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France, located at the far southeastern point of the Metropolitan France, mainland. The main P ...

, and of the

Petite Camargue The Camargue (, also , , ; ) is a coastal region in southern France located south of the city of Arles, between the Mediterranean Sea and the two arms of the Rhône river delta. The eastern arm is called the Grand Rhône; the western is the ''P ...

, in the département of

Gard Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;Occitanie. It is one of two cattle breeds raised in the area, the other being the Brava or Race de Combat, a

fighting Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict between multiple combatants with the intent to harm the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is resorted to either as a method of ...

breed. Both are associated with the rural and cultural traditions of the Camargue, including the – mounted herders who manage the livestock in

manade A manade (Provençal dialect, prov. ''menada'', originally from Latin, lat. ''manus'' = hand) is a term used mainly in the Camargue area in France for a semi-feral group of Camargue cattle or Camargue (horse), horses led by a gardian, or herder. ...

s – and the small white

horses that they ride. In 1996, beef from the two breeds of the Camargue, or from

cross-breed A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. A domestic animal of unknown ancestry, where the breed status of only one parent or grandparent is known, may also be called a crossbreed though ...

s between them, received

Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the ingredients of a food or beverage originated, most often used for the origin of wine grapes. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, s ...

status as "Taureau de Camargue". The name of the Camargue breed was changed to Raço di Biòu, and a

herd-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, 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 wh ...

was established. The population in 2004 was estimated at . In 2014, it was reported to be ; by 2020 it had risen to over , and 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 listed as 'not at risk'.

Characteristics

The Raço di Biòu is uniformly black, or occasionally dark brown. The

mucous membrane A mucous membrane or mucosa is a membrane that lines various cavities in the body of an organism and covers the surface of internal organs. It consists of one or more layers of epithelial cells overlying a layer of loose connective tissue. It ...

s are dark. The horns are large; they are grey at the base, creamy white in the middle, and dark at the tips.

Use and management

The Raço di Biòu is raised principally for the traditional sport of the '' course camarguaise'', a type of bloodless bull-running in which castrated

bullock Bullock may refer to: Animals * Bullock (in British English), a castrated male cattle, bovine animal of any age * Bullock (in American English), a young bull (an uncastrated male bovine animal) * Bullock (in Australia, India and New Zealand), an o ...

s are used. In the ring, ' must try to remove a

cockade A cockade is a knot of ribbons, or other circular- or oval-shaped symbol of distinctive colours which is usually worn on a hat or cap. The word cockade derives from the French ''cocarde'', from Old French ''coquarde'', feminine of ''coquard'' (va ...

from the forehead of the bull. The bullocks are driven on foot to the arena by mounted (the ''abrivado''), and returned to the manade in the same way (the ''bandido''). The meat of the Raço di Biòu, along with that of the Brava cattle breed and crosses between the two, can – under strict conditions of pasturage and of zone and methods of production – be marketed with the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée certification of origin as "Taureau de Camargue"; animals that have appeared in the bull-ring are excluded. Approximately head are sold each year for beef. The Raço di Biòu is managed extensively in the wetlands of the Camargue. The cattle are kept in manades, and herded by mounted . The cattle contribute to the maintenance of large areas of Camargue wetland, and are also regarded as a tourist attraction. The administration of the

Parc naturel régional de Camargue The Parc naturel régional de Camargue is a protected area which was designated in 1970 along the shoreline of the Camargue, France. The park protects a wetland environment and an adjacent marine area. The boundaries of the park have been expanded ...

participates in several aspects of the management of the breed, including registration of births and matings, and organisation of ''course camarguaises''.

References

{{Cattle breeds of France Camargue Cattle breeds originating in France