Conservation of the genetic material of Macedonian Busha cattle
2016
Gj, Bunevski (Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food, Skopje (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia). Institute of Animal Biotechnology) | Nikitović, Jelena (NGO Busha, Skopje (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)) | Saltamarski, Z. (NGO Busha, Skopje (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia))
The Busha is an indigenous breed of cattle in many Balkan countries. It has been bred for centuries. It belongs to primitive shorthorn cattle (Bos brachyceros europaeus). These cattle used to be the dominant and most important breed in almost all Balkan countries until the 1950s and 1960s, but today in lowland areas where intensive farming is practiced they have already been replaced by more productive and specialized breeds of cattle. In Macedonia this breed has officially been classified as a triple purpose breed (raised for meat, milk and draft) but considering its low production capabilities it is more similar to some primitive draft breeds. This breed is part of the National Biodiversity Program for the conservation of indigenous breeds of animals in the Republic of Macedonia. Economic, cultural and scientific reasons underlie the need to protect the biological diversity of autochthonous breeds of cattle such as the Busha. The aim of the research was to establish a gene bank for different strains of adult Busha cattle in the Republic of Macedonia. To this end, 998 samples of blood, 1100 hair coat samples and 958 doses of semen were collected from adult Busha cattle. Also, a phenotypic characterization was done on adult Busha cattle for their major productive and morphological traits. During the last few years, there have been certain negative trends in the population size of Busha cattle in accordance with the decline of the rural population in the hills and uplands and young people's disinterest in rearing indigenous breeds of cattle such as the Busha.
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