The Southern Yellow is a group of

cattle breeds List of cattle breeds — Over 1000 breeds of cattle are recognized worldwide, some of which adapted to the local climate, others which were bred by humans for specialized uses. Cattle breeds fall into two main types, which are regarded as e ...

distributed in southern China. It is one of the three principal groups within the overall Chinese Yellow cattle population, which includes all indigenous Chinese cattle of both ''Bos taurus'' and ''Bos indicus'' origin, as well as hybrids between the two species; Chinese people traditionally do not distinguish between these. The other two major groupings are the Northern Yellow and the Central Plains Yellow.

Classification

In 2001 a total of fifty-two breeds – taurine, zebuine or hybrid – were listed within the overall Chinese Yellow grouping, which does not include cattle substantially influenced by imported breeds. Breeds within the Southern Yellow or Changzhu group include the Leiqiong, the Minnan, the Panjiang, the Wuling, the Tibetan and the Yunnan Humped. The group is distributed in the

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its c ...

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

Guizhou Guizhou (; formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked province in the southwest region of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the province. Guizhou borders the autonomous region of Guangxi to t ...

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slight ...

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The pr ...

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north into h ...

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of th ...

, southern

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ning ...

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the ...

and

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by ...

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

of southern China. A slightly different classification of the Chinese native breeds has been proposed on the basis of genetic studies. The proposed groupings are: a Mongolian group in the north and north-west of the country; a southern group of principally zebuine origin, with some genetic input from the

banteng The banteng (''Bos javanicus''; ), also known as tembadau, is a species of cattle found in Southeast Asia. The head-and-body length is between . Wild banteng are typically larger and heavier than their domesticated counterparts, but are othe ...

, ''Bos javanicus''; and an intermediate group in the central part of the country, consisting mainly of taurindicine hybrids. The small Tibetan breed is not assigned to any of these three groups.

Characteristics

Cattle in the Southern Yellow group are generally smaller than those in the other two major groupings. They are compact, sturdy and short-legged, with good heat tolerance and some resistance to

tick Ticks (order Ixodida) are parasitic arachnids that are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, species, and "fullness". Ticks are external parasites, living by ...

s and to piroplasmosis. They are usually humped, with a large

dewlap A dewlap is a longitudinal flap of skin or similar flesh that hangs beneath the lower jaw or neck of many vertebrates. More loosely, it can be various similar structures in the neck area, such as those caused by a double chin or the submandibu ...

; the horns, hooves and muzzle are normally black.

Use

Cattle in this group are generally of draught conformation, with little aptitude for beef production. They are commonly shallow in the chest, and carry little rump muscle; meat yields are generally low. Milk yields of Chinese Yellow cattle in general is within the range in a

lactation Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The pr ...

of days. The low milk yield is a limiting factor in the growth rate of calves.

References

{{reflist, refs= Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016)
''Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding''
(sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. {{isbn, 9781780647944. Breed data sheet: Leigiong / China (Cattle)
Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2022. Qiu Huai, Ju Zhiyong, Chang Zhijie (1993)

''World Animal Review – Revue Mondiale de Zootechnie – Revista Mundial de Zootecnia''. 76 (3). Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{issn, 1014-6954. John William Longworth, Colin G. Brown, Scott A. Waldron (2001)
''Beef in China: Agribusiness Opportunities and Challenges''
Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. {{isbn, 9780702232312. Agriculture in China