Community hub
Recent from talks
Contribute something
Nothing was collected or created yet.
Garvonesa
View on Wikipedia
| Conservation status | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Chamusca |
| Country of origin | Portugal |
| Distribution | Alentejo |
| |
The Garvonesa or Chamusca is a Portuguese breed of draught cattle originating in the historic region of Alentejo, in southern Portugal.[3]: 299 It is distributed principally in the concelhos or former concelhos of Alcáçovas (now part of Viana do Alentejo), Almodôvar, Barrancos, Castro Verde, Odemira, Ourique, Santiago do Cacém and Vila Nova de Sao Bento (now part of Serpa).
History
[edit]The Garvonesa is a traditional draught breed of the valley of the Rio Mira in south-western Alentejo. It is believed to be intermediate between the Alentejana breed of Alentejo – to which microsatellite studies have shown it to be closely related – and the Algarvia of the Algarve region to the south.[4]: 182
It was reared principally for draught work, to which it was well suited. With the mechanisation of agriculture and transport in the years following the Second World War, it was no longer in demand for this purpose, and attention turned to other breeds with better aptitude for meat production. By the late twentieth century it had become gravely endangered. A conservation programme was initiated in the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina in 1994,[4]: 182 and a herd-book was established in the same year;[5]: 47 since 2000 this has been held by the Associação de Agricultores do Campo Branco.[6][7]
In the twenty-first century the Garvonesa is distributed principally in the concelhos of Almodôvar, Barrancos, Castro Verde, Odemira and Ourique, and the former concelho of Vila Nova de Sao Bento (now part of Serpa), all in Beja District; the former concelho of Alcáçovas – now part of Viana do Alentejo – in Evora District; and the concelho of Santiago do Cacém in Setúbal District.[8]: 31 In 2004 the population was reported as 145 cows in 7 herds; in 2024 the total number was estimated to be 1160–1293 head, with a breeding stock of 665 cows and 27 active bulls.[2]
Characteristics
[edit]The coat is generally a dark reddish brown or deep chestnut in colour. In cows, the head and withers are black, as are the lower legs and the tail;[8]: 32 it is from this that the name Chamusca derives, from chamuscar, 'scorch'.[4]: 182 In bulls the black coloration is more extensive, but does not usually extend to the dorsal region.[8]: 32
References
[edit]- ^ Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources, annex to The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. ISBN 9789251057629. Archived 23 June 2020.
- ^ a b Breed data sheet: Garvonesa / Portugal (Cattle). Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 2025.
- ^ Marleen Felius (2025). Cattle Breeds: An Encyclopedia. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 9789004449015.
- ^ a b c 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.
- ^ Valerie Porter, Ian Lauder Mason (2020). Mason's World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties (sixth edition). Wallingford; Boston: CABI. ISBN 9781789241532.
- ^ Bovinos – Raça Garvonesa (in Portuguese). Vale de Santarém: Sociedade Portuguesa de Recursos Genéticos Animais. Archived 17 December 2025.
- ^ Raça Garvonesa (in Portuguese). Castro Verde: Associação de Agricultores do Campo Branco. Archived 17 December 2025.
- ^ a b c [s.n.] (2021). Catálogo Oficial de Raças Autóctones Portuguesas (in Portuguese). Lisboa: Confederação dos Agricultores de Portugal; Direção-Geral de Alimentação e Veterinária. Archived 19 January 2024.