Scottish Highland Cow, Balquhidder , Perthshire, Scotland, UK, FK19 8PA

The Highland (Scottish Gaelic: Bò Ghàidhealach; Scots: Hielan coo) is a Scottish breed of rustic beef cattle. It originated in the Scottish Highlands and the Western Islands of Scotland and has long horns and a long shaggy coat. It is a hardy breed, able to withstand the intemperate conditions in the region. The first herd-book dates from 1885; two types – a smaller island type, usually black, and a larger mainland type, usually dun – were registered as a single breed. It is reared primarily for beef, and has been exported to several other countries The Highland is a traditional breed of western Scotland. There were two distinct types. The Kyloe, reared mainly in the Hebrides or Western Islands, was small and was frequently black.: 243  The cattle were so called because of the practice of swimming them across the narrow straits or kyles separating the islands from the mainland. The cattle of the mainland were somewhat larger, and very variable in colour; they were often brown or red. These cattle were important to the Scottish economy of the eighteenth century. At markets such as those of Falkirk or Crieff, many were bought by drovers from England, who moved them south over the Pennines to be fattened for slaughter. In 1723 over 30000 Scottish cattle were sold into England. A breed society was established in 1884, and in 1885 published the first volume of the herd-book. In this the two types were recorded without distinction as 'Highland'. In 2002 the number of registered breeding cows in the United Kingdom was about 2500; by 2012 this had risen to some 6000.  In 2021 it was 3161; the conservation status of the breed in the United Kingdom is listed in DAD-IS as endangered/at risk Although a group of cattle is generally called a herd, a group of Highland cattle is known as a "fold". They have long, wide horns and long, wavy, woolly coats. The usual coat colour is reddish brown, seen in approximately 60% of the population; some 22% are yellow