414 SCIENCE IN AFRICA 



tive is probably the Afrikander of South Africa. The Shorthorned 

 Zebu, common to-day in many parts of Africa, originated from a 

 fusion between the Zebu and Brachyceros cattle. The Sanga, 

 described by Curson and Epstein, and found in Nigeria around 

 Lake Chad, is an intermixture of the true Zebu and the indigenous 

 Hamitic Longhorn. Crosses between these three foundation types 

 probably gave rise to the majority of indigenous cattle south of 

 the Sahara. 



After this brief sketch mention must be made of a few results 

 of stock surveys, which have been started in various parts of the 

 continent, notably in the Union of South Africa, Uganda, Nigeria, 

 and the Gold Coast. In the Union of South Africa it appears that 

 since this part of the continent was known to Europeans there have 

 been four distinct types of native cattle: (i) the Bechuana, inhabit- 

 ing the arid central plateau (Curson 1934a). This is a large, 

 strong, long-horned type, possessing the small hump which is 

 characteristic of South African indigenous cattle. As native breeds 

 go, the breed produces good quality milk and shows resistance to 

 the common diseases. (2) The Hottentot or Namaqua, now the 

 Afrikander, scattered throughout the Union and Southern Rho- 

 desia (Curson 1934a). (3) The East Coast type, including the 

 Makalanga which are the dwarfs of South African cattle (Bisschop 

 and Curson 1933), and the Zulu (Curson 1934a). (4) The Ambo, 

 which is able to survive on very poor pastures and shows pro- 

 nounced resistance to disease (Groenewald and Curson 1933, 

 Bisschop and Curson 1935). Varieties occur amongst these four 

 types, either through interbreeding amongst the types or with 

 European breeds, as in the case of the Damarara, or as a result of 

 environment, as in the case of the Batawama (Curson 1934a). 



In West Africa the small unhumped cattle, which cover the 

 Gold Coast, Togoland, Dahomey, French Guinea, Ivory Coast 

 (southern), Liberia and extend into Senegal, Mauretania, the 

 Sudan, and Nigeria, are a mixture of the three foundation types. 

 Stewart has named them West African Shorthorn, from their 

 resemblance to miniature British Shorthorns; it should be empha- 

 sized, however, that the name is not intended to be used in any 

 generic sense, as indicating a homogenous breed, but merely as a 

 descriptive term. Genetically the West African Shorthorn is 



