The Pineywoods is an endangered American

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 triple-purpose

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 ...

. It derives from cattle of Iberian origin brought to Americas by the

conquistadores Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. It is one of three such

criollo Criollo or criolla (Spanish for creole) may refer to: People * Criollo people, a social class in the Spanish colonial system. Animals * Criollo duck, a species of duck native to Central and South America. * Criollo cattle, a group of cattle bre ...

breeds and is found mainly in

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, between the ranges of the other two breeds, the

Florida Cracker Florida crackers are the descendants of colonial-era British American pioneer settlers in what is now the U.S. state of Florida, and a subculture of White Southerners. The first crackers arrived in 1763 after Spain traded Florida to Great Britai ...

to the east and the

Texas Longhorn The Texas Longhorn is an American 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 conquistadors from the ti ...

to the west. In the twenty-first century it is an

endangered breed An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, invasiv ...

; in 2023 its

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 ...

was listed 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 breed (agriculture), ra ...

as 'threatened', the second level of concern of the association..

History

The Pineywoods, like other

Criollo cattle ''Criollo'' (or Creole) is a group of cattle breeds descended from Iberian Peninsula, Iberian stock imported to the Americas. The cattle were imported through the Columbian exchange, Columbian Exchange during his second visit to the Caribbean. Cr ...

, derives from cattle brought to the New World by Spanish

from the time of the Second Voyage of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

until about 1512. These cattle numbered no more than 300 head in all, and were brought to La Isla Española (now known as

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

) and other Caribbean islands. The first of them were landed in 1493 on Hispaniola to provide food for the colonists. Cattle from

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

were landed in

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

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

and

– 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 i ...

conditions for much of the time. A

breed association Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members ...

, the Pineywoods Cattle Registry and Breeders Association, was established in 1999. In the twenty-first century the Pineywoods is an

; in 2023 its

was listed by the

as 'threatened', the second level of concern of the association..

Characteristics

The Pineywoods is closely related to the

. It is small, with a body weight usually in the range for bulls and for cows. The coat is very variable, and may be of many different multi-colored patterns or almost any solid color.. The cattle are usually horned, though polled examples are also seen; the horns are variable in shape and may be crumpled or twisted, short or long. The cattle are long-lived, hardy and rugged; they are able to forage on poor pasture, show good resistance to parasites and display high tolerance of the heat and humidity of the south-eastern United States.

Use

The Pineywoods was traditionally a triple-purpose breed, used for animal traction, for

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...

and for

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...

production.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pineywoods (Cattle) Cattle breeds originating in the United States Conservation Priority Breeds of the Livestock Conservancy