The Portuguese mertolenga cattle breed: a review

AbstractThis review summarizes the state of the art regarding the phylogenetic origins, recent history and present-day main traits and uses of theMertolenga cattle breed from Southern Portugal, particularly those related to production performances and product quality. Named after the historical city of M értola, in southern Portugal, theMertolenga is one of the fifteen autochthonous bovine breeds of Portugal. It is a cattle breed thoroughly adapted to the poor Mediterranean pastures of the southern regions of the Iberian Peninsula. It is used predominantly in an extensive to semi-intensive sylvopastoral production system calledmontado, where pastures are combined with helm and cork trees. Its productive traits allow for a good adaptation to the intense dry heat and pasture shortage during the summer, and compensatory growth in autumn and spring, when pastures regenerate. They are small to medium sized animals, with well-balanced bodies, roan, red, or, less often, red-spotted coats, and known for their nervous temperament. Although this breed experienced a severe decline in numbers in the 1970s and classified as endangered in the 1990s, the work of a few breeders led to the establishment of largerMertolenga breed inventories, starting from a limited base. For this reason, the entire breed has today a strong influence from a very few herds and sires. Reproduction is still mostly achieved using natural mating, and the males are often kept with the breeding females all year long...
Source: Tropical Animal Health and Production - Category: Veterinary Research Source Type: research