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OCTOBER 2004 |
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Weaver first saw the cattle while he was working in Zimbabwe as a research wildlife biologist for Cornell University. His work there involved preserving endangered wildlife species, and he had traveled to Zimbabwe looking for a rare falcon. "While I was hiking in bush country, I found these cattle on tribal lands," he said. The cattle were small, fine boned, with gentle neck humps, and sloping rumps. What really caught his eye was how thin the cattle were. It was the dry season, and they had little to eat. "I couldn't believe such thin cattle could actually be a resource to the people," he said. Arid Land Survivors On later trips to Zimbabwe, Weaver discovered that the strength of the Mashona cattle is their native ability to thrive in the dry weather and rebound when the seasonal rains return. In the dry season they forage, just as wild deer do, on shrubs other cattle would not touch, but when the rains come back, the grasses and shrubs regrow, and the Mashonas quickly get fat, sleek, and shiny again. During this season of plenty they calve and rebreed even though they were nearly starving just a few months earlier. The ability of the cattle to rebound fascinated Weaver, and he imagined this trait could be a great help to commercial beef breeders in the dry regions of North America. In particular, he thought Mashonas would do well on the ranch he was then putting together in New Mexico, where he planned to retire. To find the best genetics possible among the African cattle he relied on help from Dr. John Tiffin, who selected Mashonas from the finest purebred breeders in Zimbabwe, eventually building a herd of 100 cows in that country. Embryos were flushed from these cows, frozen, and sent to the United States to be transplanted into common commercial beef cows. The sleek, red and black polled offspring now roam the dry sand and bunch-grass ranges of his New Mexico ranch. Smaller than many beef breeds, Mashona cows average 900 pounds, while bulls weigh 1,400 pounds. Average birth weight of calves is 52 pounds. The average adjusted 205-day weaning weight of full-blood nursing calves is 300 pounds. Half-Mashona heifers raised on Angus and Brangus mothers have averaged 367 pounds at weaning on the New Mexico ranch. While the cattle are small, their adaptability to dry, sparse range has proven Weaver's theory that the cattle could be a benefit to ranchers in arid parts of the United States. Mashonas are hardy and when calving in summer, require no additional feed other than what they can get by grazing. They calve on the range without assistance and rebreed easily. Economic Feeders
Mashonas also have a surprising tendency to have well-marbled carcasses with little backfat. Feedlot trials have shown how this increases the commercial value of the cattle. In the fall of 2000 Weaver sold 71 half-Mashona steers to New Mexico State University's feedlot research station. The steers were fed for 210 days, then sold "on the grid," meaning the packer paid for the cattle based on the carcass quality rather than offering a flat price for the live animal. "The steers' performance was outstanding," said Weaver. "More than 90 percent graded Prime or Choice, with a Yield Grade of 2.87. At 641 pounds, the carcasses were lighter than average, but still 'fit the box' of the slaughter industry. "A staff member at the research station told me that he had calculated the equivalent price on-the-hoof based on the grid price received in the meat. These steers topped the live price that day by more than $10 a hundredweight, or more than $100 an animal." Mashonas on Test Another feeding trial involved 30 half-blood steers that were fed for 189 days. They averaged 87 percent Choice and Prime, with a Yield Grade average of 2.6. Half-blood Mashona steers in Texas A&M University's "Ranch to Rail" program also performed well. All graded Choice, with an average ribeye area of 14.4 inches, a dressing percentage of 65.5 percent, and an average Yield Grade of 2.75. They earned an average per head profit of $36.83, while the average for the entire program was a loss of $10.95 per head. Excellent feeding results also came from a group of 46 half-Mashona steers in New Mexico State University's "Ranch to Rail" program. A harsh spring and trouble at the feedlot depressed the average performance of all cattle during this particular feeding trial. In spite of this, Weaver said, "Our half-Mashona steers graded Choice more than three times as often as the other cattle in the program." His 46 steers earned an average profit of $40.89 each. The other 144 head of cattle in the test averaged a loss of $67.81 each. "Even when unforeseen conditions reduced the quality of our half-Mashona cattle, they still out-performed the others by more than $100 a head," he said.
A number of local ranchers have used Mashona sires from Weaver's herd. He then offers to buy the calves back from them. Some of his bulls have gone to buyers in other states. He also offers ranchers frozen semen from 21 full blood Mashona sires. "We intend to collect semen from nearly all of our founding bulls to assure the availability of the broadest range of genetics possible," he said. "These founder bulls represent the best of the best herds in Zimbabwe at the time our donor herd was assembled." Success in the North Because of their genetic adaptation to South Africa, full blood Mashonas are best acclimated, of course, to warmer regions of the United States. Half-bloods, however, have grown thick hair coats and over-wintered well as far north as Alberta. Mashonas fit well with Weaver's overall goals for the ranch. He is trying to evolve a system of management that will help to heal the soil and restore the plant community to a natural balance of grass and shrubs. "The land is beat up," he said. "It was all homesteaded, and most of the top soil blew away during the Dust Bowl years." Before that, it was overgrazed by big ranchers' herds of Mexican cattle. To encourage as much grass growth as possible, Weaver takes care not to overgraze the land. "We used to hear that you should take half and leave half," he said. "But we try to take only 25 percent of the grass in the growing season and leave 75 percent. Having cattle that don't require a lot of resources helps." The work of restoring rangeland and preserving the genetics of an ancient breed of African cattle that are now facing an uncertain future in their home- land, fits with Weaver's lifelong interest in preserving endangered species. "Civil unrest and deteriorating political conditions in Zimbabwe have added a true sense of purpose to our care of this herd," he said. "Loss of animals as well as records are but one byproduct of farm takeovers in that country. Because of that, our herd of Mashonas may soon be the largest and most diverse in the world." |
