Cattle: Senepol

Country of Origin

St. Croix Island, Virgin Islands, Caribbean

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Australian Status

International Status

The breed is found in 17 nations with an estimated population size of 142,000.

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Uses

Beef

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Breed traits

The Senepol is a medium framed, polled, short haired breed of cattle with a gentle disposition.  It is used primarily for beef, but has high milk production as well.  It is heat tolerant and insect resistant.  Accepted colours are red, black, and brown.  

Adult cows weight between 550-650 kg, and bulls around 930kg;  both are early breeders.  The cows are known for their easy in calving.

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History

The Senepol was developed in the island of St. Croix by crossing the N’Dama (Bos Taurus) a native of West Africa with the British Red Poll.  Recent DNA testing has shown a small influence of the Zebu cattle as well.
 
In the mid-1800s Mr. George Elliot imported some N’Dama into St. Croix.  As St. Croix has a tropical climate, he hoped the cattle would be more suited to the island’s climate.  In the early 1900 century, Mr. Bromley Nelthropp imported a Red Poll bull to put over the N’Dama herd to increase milk production.   With the addition of more Red Poll bulls, this cross formed the basis of the Senepol breed going forward.

The name Senepol was adopted in 1954 and the breed registry was established by the late 1960s. 

History in Australia

The first Senepol genetics came into Australia via semen in 1996.   To widen the gene pool, in the late 1990s embryos were imported from Georgia, USA and St. Croix, as well as three bulls from the States.

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Breed Organisation

The Australian Senepol Cattle Breeders Association

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Australian Population

2022:  Males: 14; Females: 180; Herds: 10

Page by Carol Wormald, June 2025

References
https://www.senepol.com.au/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senepol
https://dadis-transboundary-breed-ws.web.app/?species=Cattle&transboundary

 

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