Angus

Description

The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scottish breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine and Angus in north-eastern Scotland.  In 2018 the breed accounted for over 17% of the UK beef industry. The Angus is naturally polled and solid black or red, although the udder may be white. The cattle have been exported to many countries of the world; there are large populations in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South America and the United States, where it has developed into two separate and distinct breeds, the American Angus and Red Angus.  In some countries it has been bred to be taller than the native Scottish stock. Its conservation status worldwide is "not at risk"  in the United Kingdom the original Native Aberdeen Angus cattle not influenced by cross-breeding with imported stock is listed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust as "at risk". Aberdeen Angus cattle have been recorded in north-eastern Scotland since at least the sixteenth century. For some time before the 1800s, the hornless cattle in Aberdeenshire and Angus were called Angus doddies. In 1824, William McCombie of Tillyfour, later the Member of Parliament for West Aberdeenshire, began to improve the stock and is regarded today as the father of the breed. Many local names emerged, including doddies or hummlies. The breed was officially recognised in 1835, and was initially registered together with the Galloway in the Polled Herd Book. A society was formed in 1879. The cattle became commonplace throughout the British Isles in the middle of the twentieth century. As stated in the fourth volume of the Herd Book of the UK's Angus, this breed was introduced to Argentina in 1879 when "Don Carlos Guerrero" imported one bull and two cows for his Estancia "Charles" located in Juancho, Partido de General Madariaga, Provincia de Buenos Aires. The bull was born on 19 April 1878; named "Virtuoso 1626" and raised by Colonel Ferguson. The cows were named "Aunt Lee 4697" raised by J. James and "Cinderela 4968" raised by R. Walker and were both born in 1878, on 31 January and 23 April respectively. Angus cattle were first introduced to Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) in the 1820s, and to the southern mainland in 1840. The breed is now found in all Australian states and territories with 62,000 calves registered with Angus Australia in 2010.