Yanbian cattle

The Yanbian is a taurine breed of cattle that originated in northeast China.[1] They belong to the "yellow" class of Chinese cattle,[2] and are closely related to the Korean Hanwoo breed, having diverged from a common ancestor in the late 19th/early 20th century.[3] Unlike the majority of Chinese cattle breeds, Yanbian have had no ancestral breeding with indicine cattle.[4] They are mainly distributed in northeastern China, in the Jilin, Heilongjiang and Liaoning Provinces.[3] In 2010, it was estimated there were 210,000 individuals.[5]

Females are 122 cm tall at the withers, 141 cm in length and weigh 365 kg on average; males are 131 cm tall at the withers, 152 cm in length and weigh 465 kg on average.[6] Their coat colour is predominantly yellow, and both males and females are horned.[5]

They are primarily used as draught animals, particularly in rice production.[6] They are also increasingly being raised for beef,[3] with a dressing percentage of 40-48%.[6] However, they have a slow growth rate, so production potential is limited. Yanbians were crossed with Limousins in 1987 to produce the Yan Yellow breed, which has improved beef production qualities.[2]