Wild Cattle in Britain
The Chillingham Herd
A. Karlsson, VEGA Research 2007
Figure 1: Chillingham cattle, picture from http://www.whitepark.org.uk/chillingham.htm.
Domesticated cattle
Cattle are domesticated ungulates, a member of the subfamily Bovinae of the
family Bovidae, a family that also includes e.g. goats, sheep, bison and antelope.
Domesticated cattle are raised for meat, dairy products, and leather, and to be used as
draught animals (pulling carts and plows). The word cattle derives from the Latin caput
(head) and means unit of livestock or one head. There are 3.8 million dairy and beef
cattle in the UK (figures from 2005). Including younger calves and heifers, the figure is
about 10.4 million.
There are two different domestic breeds of cattle; Bos indicus (zebu) and Bos
taurus (taurine), differentiated by the presence or absence of a hump, and they both
derived from the aurochs, Bos primigenius. Bos indicus occurs mainly in tropical regions
and Bos taurus mainly in temperate regions. Recently the two breeds as well as the
aurochs have been grouped as one species, with the subspecies Bos primigenius
taurus, Bos primigenius indicus and Bos primigenius primigenius. The dairy cattle in the
UK today are mainly Friesian/Holstein. The use of artificial insemination has contributed
to the higher production levels of these cattle.
Figure 2: Aurochs, picture from the Natural History Museum.
There are two theories of how the aurochs became domesticated. One theory is
that the two domesticated breeds mentioned above originated from the same species
8,000-11,000 years ago. The second theory is that the two breeds originated from two
subspecies of the aurochs in different locations. Examination of DNA (Loftus et al. 1994)
showed that there are two distinct lineages, one European (taurine breeds)/African (a
cross between zebu and taurine breeds) and one Indian (zebu breeds), supporting the
theory that the domestication occurred in different locations, and the domestication could
have happened 200,000 to 1 million years ago.
Aurochs in Britain became extinct during the Bronze Age (2200-700 BC), but
these aurochs had no genetic contribution to Britain’s domesticated cattle. Modern
European cattle are thought to be descended directly from the domestication of the
aurochs in the Near East mentioned above. The last aurochs were killed by poachers in
Masovia, Poland, in 1627. Human breeders have attempted to recreate the species by
crossing commercial breeds, creating the Heck cattle breed (see picture below).
Figure 3: Heck cattle, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Heckrund2.JPG.
The closest living relatives of the domestic cattle are bantengs, Bos Javanicus,
and gaur, Bos gaurus, in South East Asia. Bantengs are endangered and the world
population is unlikely to be more than 8,000 and could be fewer than 5,000 animals.
Gaurs are classified as vulnerable, and there are an estimated 13,000-30,000 left. Both
bantengs and gaur are threatened by hunting, loss of habitat, disease transmission from
domestic cattle, and interbreeding with domestic and semi-feral cattle. Like many other
horned mammals they are valued by humans for their horns.
Bantengs and gaurs form small herds of 10-30 individuals. Dairy cattle in the UK
have an average herd size of 70, although sometimes there can be up to 150 individuals
in the same herd. In the wild, several herds of bantengs or gaurs may get together
during breeding season. Young males often form bachelor groups. There is a strict
social hierarchy in a herd based on matriarchal families. The highest ranking individual
has priority to food, shelter and water, and the offspring inherits its mother’s status.
Calves often form lifelong relationships when only a few days old, and the social bonds
are reinforced through mutual grooming. A new member or separation of a herd is very
stressful to the herd.
Cattle have poor depth perception and they are therefore reluctant to enter dark
or shadowy areas and they also react to e.g. changes in floor surface and shadows.
They have good hearing, which is superior to humans’ hearing, and cattle are sensitive
to loud, sudden noises.
Gaur (from WWF)
Banteng (from WWF)
The colour of cattle is due to its origin, but also to genetic modification; e.g. the
Celts thought red animals symbolised fertility and crops, black animals pestilence and
death, and white animals the worship of the sun (Alderson 1992), which might have lead
to selective breeding of the cattle to produce these colours.
Britain’s wild cattle
Animals (human and non-human species) have colonised and re-colonised
Britain several times in the past, maybe from as early as 500,000 years ago. Due to
several glaciations most species have had to move south from Britain several times to
avoid the cold and the glaciers. One of these glaciations was the last major cold event,
which peaked around 18,000 years ago. Britain was then connected to the continent.
Further fluctuations in the climate followed, before the current warm phase (the
Holocene) began about 10,000 years ago. Humans and large land mammals, including
wild cattle, crossed the land bridge before Britain was disconnected from the mainland.
Today, there are six “wild” cattle herds in Britain; the Chillingham, Vaynol,
Dyneros, Woburn, Whipsnade and Cadzow herds, but not all of them are wild or purebreed anymore since most of them are domesticated to some extent. The Chillingham
herd is considered to be truly wild as they have been isolated in the Chillingham park for
750 years with little human interference.
.
Figure 4: The Chillingham cattle in the Chillingham park, from Hall et al. 2005
The Chillingham herd
The Chillingham cattle are white cattle, remnants of Britain’s wild cattle. The herd
of 57 individuals resides in a 365-acre park, the Chillingham Park (link to
http://www.chillingham-wildcattle.org.uk/Visitor_Information.htm#Map),
in
Northumberland, northern England, owned by the Chillingham Wild Cattle Association
(CWCA), a registered charity. This park was enclosed in 1270 AD and the cattle have
been isolated from other cattle and from most human interference since then (there is as
little contact with humans as possible). The park is open (link to http://www.chillinghamwildcattle.org.uk/) to the public, but visitors must be accompanied by a warden.
Other species that can be seen in the park are e.g. roe deer (Capreolus
capreolus), fallow deer (Cervus dama) and several bird species, as well as tree species
such as alders (Alnus sp.), beeches (Fagus sp.) and oaks (Quercus sp.). There are also
300 breeding ewes in the park. The total stocking density of the park is 0.48 livestock
unit per hectare.
The isolation of the Chillingham cattle means that for the last 750 years the herd
has had no contact with other cattle. This isolation and the small size of the population in
the past have lead to inbreeding, creating a genetic bottleneck. (A genetic bottleneck is
when there are few individuals left in a population and the population experiences a
decline in genetic variability over time. Genetic bottlenecks can have devastating effects
on the variability and fitness of a population). The Chillingham herd is almost genetically
uniform, but there seems to be no reduction in fertility so far.
The small population size of the Chillingham cattle has most likely brought about
the cattle evolving into a smaller size. An adult Chillingham cow weighs 280 kg on
average, compared to American bison, Bison bison, 1360kg and domestic cattle 300400kg depending on species. Chillingham cows will mature at the age of 4 years while
bulls will mature at the age of 18-20 months, and life expectancy is 17 years for cows
and 13 for bulls. This is compared to American Bison, 18-22 years (or 35-40 years in
captivity), and other cattle, 20-50 years depending on the species, although e.g. a dairy
cow will live for 4-7 years before worn out and slaughtered, ending up as meat for
hamburgers.
The herd is a rare opportunity to study the natural behaviour of cattle practically
free from human interference. The herd is one of a few cattle herds in the world that has
a natural sex ratio and age distribution. Most other cattle are farmed animals;
slaughtered at an early age. Roughly one fourth of the Chillingham females will have a
calf each year, see Error! Reference source not found. below. The cows will calve
away from the herd, and the calf will be introduced into the herd and initially greeted by
the King bull; the dominant bull in the herd and the only bull that mates with the cows. A
dam will suckle her calf 4-6 times a day, while a dairy cow will be milked twice a day.
Female calves will suckle until they are nine months old and stay with their mothers for
life. Males are weaned at 12 months old. In modern day farming the calves of dairy cows
will be taken from their mothers after 1 or 2 days.
Cattle, if they are allowed to, would spend 4-14 hours grazing and 9-12 hours
lying down. The Chillingham herd will graze during summer around dusk and dawn and
during mid-morning and early afternoon. During winter there might be some night-time
grazing. The cattle can graze up to 3h at a time and females graze longer than males in
summer.
The Chillingham cattle are white with red-brown ears and markings and black
spotting on the shoulders. They never seem to have calves that are any other colour, or
even partly coloured. All animals have horns.
Figure 5: Chillingham calves, from Hall et al. 2005.
There are records of the size of the Chillingham herd dating back to 1692 and the
largest numbers were 80 individuals in 1838. In 1947, due to a severe winter and
previous droughts leading to a lack of fodder, only 13 individuals survived. However, as
of 2005 the numbers are 57. In 1968 there was an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease
in Northumberland. The disease never reached the Chillingham herd, but after this threat
a small reserve herd (currently of 12 individuals) was set up near Elgin in north-east
Scotland.
Some welfare implications in the herd are calving difficulties and abandonment of
calves. Several cows died due to magnesium deficiency in the early 1980s. Therefore,
magnesium limestone has been applied to 6 ha of land each year. Bracken cutting has
been carried out since 1992 to increase the supply of herbage. The Chillingham cattle
have been fed hay in the winter since at least 1721, this is because the cattle cannot
roam freely outside the park to seek out enough food to survive the winter. The hay is
purchased from an organic local farm. The cattle are also fed compound feed approved
by the Soil Association in winter to try to improve the nutritional status of the calves. The
cattle usually don’t go under cover or seek shelter.
The nearest outbreak of the Foot and Mouth disease in 2001 occurred 10km
from Chillingham. In the event of a future outbreak, vaccination could be an option under
an EU Directive, although CWCA has concerns of the handling of the animals as well as
the possible risks of a vaccine in these homozygous cattle. There is no evidence of any
notifiable diseases in the herd and the cattle has never been identified with tuberculosis
(an animal health problem currently facing the farming industry in Great Britain, see
http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/tb/index.htm). Hall et al. (2005) thinks the homozygosity
of the herd might make it highly vulnerable to disease, although other sources suggest
the homozygosity could make them more resistant. This would probably depend on the
genes and the disease. Since 1950 some diseases have been investigated in 64 cattle
that have had a post-mortem examination.
Table 1: Diseases investigated in the Chillingham herd
Disease investigated
Disease found
Cause of death
Similar disease in
domesticated cattle
Histological evidence of
mild Johne's disease,
1963. Johne's disease,
2005. Bovine tuberculosis
not observed
Johne's disease in 2005
Johne's disease is an
infectious condition
caused by Mycobacterium
avium subspecies
paratuberculosis. The disease
results in diarrhea, severe
weight loss, and infertility. It
is notifiable in Northern
Ireland but not in the rest of
the UK. Estimates of herd
prevalence of 1% and 17.5%
in the UK
Dystocia
1945 - February 2005
Cause of death of 8 cows
or heifers (1.8% of
calvings have resulted in
the death of the dam)
5 % of births in dairy cattle,
assistance with calving needed
Ectoparasites
Haematopinus eurysternus No obvious louse
(louse), 1977
infestation
Endoparasites
Worms found: Ostertagia
Ostertagia and Dictocaulus sp.
sp., 1983 Trichostrongyles
In calves mainly in summer
No evidence of parasites in
sp., 1983 Cooperia sp.,
months in their first grazing
post-mortem
1983 Fascioliasis sp., 1963
season, and sometimes in the
& 2005
later winter months
Bacterial diseases
Hypomagnesaemia
1980. Symptoms: high
excitability, falling over
with spasms in the legs,
death due to heart failure
Neoplasias
Intraocular melanoma with
secondaries to the liver,
2002
Ocular disease
New forest disease
widespread in the herd in
the late 1970s
Skeletal and dental
defects
Calf born without a tail,
1999
Cause of death of 6
lactating cows
Can cause hair loss, irritation
and loss of body condition in
housed cattle at any age
Mainly in animals on spring
grass (low in Mg content) and
occasionally on autumn grass
(foggage or fog fever: when
hungry cattle that have been
on dry feed for some time are
allowed free access to rapidly
growing, lush green feed)
New forest disease is an
infectious bovine
keratoconjunctivitis, a group
of eye
diseases of cattle which can
lead to impaired
vision or blindness if left
untreated. Causes can be
bacteria, viruses, fungi and
Commonly associated with
worms. It can be successfully
trauma and secondary
treated and cleared up
bacterial infection
overnight.
Signs of the disease are runny
and sore eyes with ulcers in
the eye surrounded by a
red area. Flies can spread the
infection. One prevention is to
use eartags
impregnated with insecticide
to help control fly infestation
Testicular hypoplasia In yearling bulls
Trauma
1945 - 2005
Cause of death of 14 bulls
and females due to injuries
caused by other members
of the herd
Trauma is the cause of injury
in domestic cattle due to e.g.
overcrowding, stress and long
transports
Possible threat of public access to the park
The Right to Roam (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3651482.stm) under the CROW
Act
2000
(Countryside
and
Rights
of
Way
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/20000037.htm) gives access of open country and
registered common land to the public. The Chillingham Wild Cattle Association (CWCA
http://www.chillingham-wildcattle.org.uk/) has submitted a formal application to have the
park
closed
to
public
access
(under
Section
25
(http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00037--d.htm#25) of the Act relating to public
danger), and is awaiting a decision on this.
There are several articles about the Chillingham herd in our database, available from our
home page.
Links, sources and further reading
Chillingham Wild Cattle Association (hyperlink) http://www.chillinghamwildcattle.org.uk/ was formed in 1939 to take care of the herd. Another charity, the Sir
James Knott Charitable Trust, owns the land and has leased the grazing rights to the
Chillingham Wild Cattle Association for 999 years.
Opening times are 1 April until 31 October: Monday-Saturday (excluding
Tuesday) 10am-12 noon, Monday-Sunday (excluding Tuesday) 2pm-5pm. See website
for up-to-date opening times. admission prices and a map (http://www.chillinghamwildcattle.org.uk/).
Sir James Knott Charitable Trust
Brigadier J.F.F. Sharland
Secretary
Sir James Knott 1990 Trust
16-18 Hood Street
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
NE1 6JQ
Chillingham Wild Cattle Association
The Secretary
Chillingham Wild Cattle
The Warden's Cottage
Chillingham
Alnwick
Northumberland
NE66 5NP
Countryside and Rights of Way http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/20000037.htm
White Park Cattle
http://www.whitepark.org.uk/
Chillingham cattle
Hall, S. et al., 2005. Management of the Chillingham Wild White Cattle. Government
Veterinary Journal 15(2): 4-11
http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/gvj/vol1502/gvj-vol1502.pdf
Visscher, P.M., Smith, D., Hall, S.J.G. and Williams, J.L., 2001. A Viable Herd of
Genetically Uniform Cattle. Nature 409: 303
http://www.era.lib.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/1842/690/2/Visscher_P.pdf
Hall, S.J.G. and Hall, J.G., 1988. Inbreeding and population Dynamics of the Chillingham
Cattle (Bos taurus). Journal of Zoology, 216(2): 479-493 abstract available at
http://md1.csa.com/partners/viewrecord.php?requester=gs&collection=ENV&recid=1884
093&q=&uid=1310432&setcookie=yes
History of cattle
Alderson, L. The Categorization of Types and Breeds of Cattle in Europe. Archivos de
zootecnia 41(154): 325
www.uco.es/organiza/servicios/publica/az/articulos/1992/145(extra)/pdf/lawrence_325_3
35.pdf (if not available as pdf try to get the html version from google)
Cymbron, T., Freeman, A.R., Malheiro, M.I., Vigne, J-D. and Bradley, D.G., 2005.
Microsatellite Diversity Suggests Different Histories for Mediterranean and Northern
European Cattle Populations. Proceedings: Biological Sciences, 272(1574): 1837-1943
abstract available at
http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/app/home/contribution.asp?wasp=a9930c26739d48c
099b4dc1966758c3e&referrer=parent&backto=issue,14,17;journal,2,204;linkingpublicati
onresults,1:102024,1
Loftus, R.T., MacHugh, D.E., Bradley, D.G., Sharp, P.M. and Cunningham, P., 1994.
Evidence for Two Independent Domestications of Cattle. PNAS 91: 2757-2761,
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/abstract/91/7/2757
Aurochs http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfacts/factfiles/3037.shtml
Conservation status of wild cattle (a table showing increasing or declining trends
in the different species)
http://www.csew.com/cattletag/Cattle%20Website/Conservation%20Status/Conservation
_Status.htm
Farming
Viva, 2005, The dark side of dairy, available from
http://www.milkmyths.org.uk/pdfs/dairy_report.pdf
UFAW, 1999. Management and Welfare of Farm Animals, Halstan & Co, Amersham
Fraser, A.F. & Broom, D.M.,1990. Farm Animal Behaviour and Welfare. Balliere Tindall,
London
DEFRA, 2006. Stats 04/06: Agricultural and Horticultural census: June 2005, United
Kingdom, available from http://statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/statnot/june_uk.pdf
Guar and Banteng
WWF, undated, Introducing the Gaur and Banteng, available from
http://assets.panda.org/downloads/10gafactsheete.pdf
http://www.vegaresearch.org/animal_dairy.asp
Stephen Hall, Lincoln Uni:
sthall@lincoln.ac.uk
Tel: 01522 895434