ORIGIN & EVOLUTIONARY TIMELINE

Boran cattle were domesticated in 3 parts of the world:

Point of Domestication Region Estimated Date
Bos Indicus (Zebu) Indus Valley (Pakistan) 4000 BC
European Bos Taurus Eastern Europe 6000 BC
African Bos Taurus Eastern Sub-Saharan Africa 8000 BC

INTRODUCTION INTO AFRICA

European Bos Taurus
  • The first introduction was humpless taurine Hamitic Longhorns (Bos Taurus) and they arrived in the Nile Delta around 6000 BC.
  • The second introduction, that of the taurine Shorthorns (B. Taurus) supposedly occurred about 2750-2500 BC.
Bos Indicus
  • The first introduction of the humped zebu Bos indicus cattle was early as 2000-1788 BC.
  • The second introduction, associated with the Arab invasion of Africa, occurred from about 699 AD.
African Bos Taurus
  • Domesticated directly in Africa.

THE GENETIC BLUEPRINT

Through DNA sampling Hanotte et al have analyzed the genetic make-up of the Boran and it consists of the following genetic proportions:

 
Bos Indicus
(64%)		 European Bos Taurus
(26%)		 African Bos Taurus
(12%)
 
Bos Indicus
(64%)		 European Bos Taurus
(24%)		 African Bos Taurus
(12%)

The Boran developed in eastern Africa and the main Boran hotspot was the Borana plateau in southern Ethiopia.

The Boran developed into the dominant breed of eastern Africa and especially in Kenya, where the Kenyan Boran Cattle Breeders' Society (BCBS) have bred the "Improved Boran" since the turn of the century.

"While the Boran breeders have greatly improved the beef conformation of their animals, they never lost sight of the important qualities of the indigenous Boran" to quote the BCBS.

As far as can be determined this is the only breed in Africa (and therefore the world) to have this specific combination of genes.