Maronesa

Did You Know?

• Since 1996, beef and veal from Maronesa animals reared by eco-friendly methods in a defined area north of Vila Real has DOP status and may be marketed as 'Carne Maronesa DOP'.
• The calving rate is low, at about 75 per 100 cows.
• Approximately a certain percentage of cows are naturally bred and a certain percentage artificially inseminated.

History

The Maronesa breed's exact origins are debated, but historical evidence points to crosses between Barrosã and Mirandesa cattle. It was classified as a crossbreed until around 1835, when it gained recognition as a distinct breed. A 1993 study on the 1/29 Robertsonian translocation supports this lineage: the Maronesa's translocation frequency of about 40% falls between the Barrosã's 65% and the Mirandesa's below 2%. However, a 1998 study found significant genetic distance between the Maronesa and those breeds, as well as others from northern Portugal and Galicia.

Later, micro-satellite analysis in 2004 placed it closest to the Barrosã. Historically, the Maronesa was abundant in the Douro, Minho, and Trás-os-Montes provinces, especially in the Serra do Alvão and Serra do Marão. No census data exists before 1940, when just over a certain number were counted; counts followed in 1955 and 1972, with numbers later declining. A breeders' association formed in 1988, and a breed register began that year.

By 1996, the number of farmers raising the breed had increased. In 2008, the Direção Geral de Veterinária officially approved the breed, and the register became a genealogical herd-book. At the end of 2016, breeding cows were registered, with the total population estimated. In 2023, there were adult cows and 158 bulls across 810 breeders. Threats include a shrinking number of keepers, their rising average age, and changes to tax regulations.

Characteristics

The Maronesa is a traditional rustic breed showing morphological similarity to the Portuguese fighting bull, the Brava de Lide, with marked sexual dimorphism. Mature bulls are larger than cows, with a more heavily muscled neck and greater forepart development, while cows and bullocks have a rectangular body outline. The usual colour is black with a chestnut dorsal stripe, though many cows are chestnut-brown. There is a pale ring round the muzzle; the muzzle and mucosa are black. The head is broad and short with a straight profile, and the horns extend horizontally then point forwards and downwards. The dewlap is well developed, and the cow's udder is covered in fine hair.