Between the Lines, Winter 1986 by Robert Gear
Lineback Cattle: A well-marked breed
Cattle with lineback color patterns have occurred throughout the world in many
breeds. In the Texas Longhorn and some African breeds, the lineback patterns occur randomly. In breeds such as
the English Longhorn, Gloucester, Pinzgauer, Vosgienne, and the Moiled cattle of Ireland, the lineback pattern in some form
is their identifying characteristic. And still others, such as the native Welsh breed, consistently display several
color phases, of which the lineback is one.
Geneticists recognize two variations of the Lineback. The first is one
in which the animal has a dark, usually black or red body with a white dorsal stripe, possibly a star on the face, white tail
and belly, and perhaps one or more garters or white bands around the legs, where they join the body.
The other and more prevalent type has a lot more white on the body and face,
and much speckling or "brockling" on the face, body, and legs. The brockling may be in the form of round or elliptical
spots or roaning or both.
The first pattern is called the linebacked pattern, while the second is called
the color-sided pattern. The English Longhorn, Irish Moiled, Norwegian Telemark, Swedish Mountain, and Dutch Witrick
have the color-sided phase as their characteristic marking, while the lineback pattern in which brockling does not occur is
exemplified by the English Old Gloucester and the Austrian Pinzgauer.
Considering that livestock of all classes has been imported to the United States,
it is not surprising that we have our own Lineback breed. Both types are found, with the color-sided variety predominating.
The sources from which our stock derive and the periods when their ancesters entered our agricultural history are conjectural
and likely not be resolved fully, as documentation is almost nonexistent.
It is reasonable to assume that Linebacks were among the cattle imported into
the U.S. in the 17th and 18th centuries. The Dutch were bringing cattle into New York at a time when the Witrick was
plentiful, while many British ships coming to America were sailing from Bristol, a geographically convenient port for the
export of Gloucester and Welsh cattle.
During the 19th century progressive American farmers began to look again to
Europe for improved stock, including Ayrshires, Friesians, Herefords and Milking Shorthorns, all of which were capable of
throwing occasional linebacked offspring. There breeds, plus the English Longhorn, probably contributed to the Lineback
presence in the United States.
Following World War II, in the stampede for bigger yields, dairy farmers increasingly
began to use Holstein bulls to "upgrade" their herds. In New England these herds were often the old unimproved Durhams
or Milking Shorthorns, but in New York and the Midwest, as well as much of northern Vermont and neighboring Canada, there
were many herds of Linebacks of both types which were graded up with Holstein bulls.
Because the Lineback and color-sided patterns are genetically strong and the
Holstein pattern is weak, the Lineback will often persist through many generations of outcrossing. Today there are several
thousand Lineback dairy cows in the United States, some of them essentially Holsteins, some from Milking Shorthorn or other
backgrounds, and some quite unique.
(reprinted from the "Small Farmer's Journal")
