Chillingham Cattle

Chillingham cattle live in a large enclosed park beside Chillingham Castle in Northumberland. The herd numbers 138 animals, with roughly equal numbers of males and females. They have survived for centuries despite living in a small, genetically isolated group. A smaller reserve herd of about twenty animals lives on Crown Estate Scotland land near Fochabers. The cattle are related to White Park cattle but have contributed to that breed without receiving any genes in return. The cattle are small, with upright horns in both sexes. Bulls weigh around 300 kg and cows about 280 kg. They are white with red ears, sometimes with colour on their feet, nose and around the eyes. Their primitive shape contrasts with the classical beef conformation of White Park cattle. Academic studies have reviewed the herd’s unusual genetics and survival despite inbreeding. Visitors walk the park with a warden to find the cattle in meadows or woodlands. The park’s ancient streamside alders were coppiced in the mid-18th century and are now about 250 years old. Oak trees planted in the 1780s–early 19th century dot the grassland, giving a sense of medieval wood pasture. The site supports red squirrels, foxes, badgers, roe deer and fallow deer, along with fifty-five bird species. The summit of Ros Hill lies just east of the park.