Jersey Cattle

A British breed of small dairy cattle from Jersey in the Channel Islands, one of three Channel Island cattle breeds along with the Guernsey and the now-extinct Alderney. It descends from cattle stock brought over from the nearby Norman mainland and was first recorded as a separate breed around 1700, then kept genetically isolated for more than two centuries by an import ban that ran from 1789 to 2008. Jersey cattle are notably small, with females weighing 350 to 400 kilograms and standing about 115 to 120 centimeters at the withers, and they are prized as dairy producers for milk that is high in butterfat and has a characteristic yellowish tinge; the breed adapts well to many climates and, unlike most breeds from temperate regions, tolerates heat well. Jerseys are now kept worldwide for dairy production and crossbreeding, valued for easy calving, high fertility and rich milk composition.