Scientific Classification of Beefmaster Cattle

The Beefmaster cattle breed dates back to 1908 when Texas-based rancher Ed C. Lasater began a breeding program. He paired two British breeds, the Hereford and the Shorthorn, with the Brahman cattle breed from India. Both the Hereford and Shorthorn were crossed with Brahmans and the resulting offspring were selectively bred to produce the breed known today as Beefmaster. Today's breed is half Brahman and around a quarter each of Hereford and Shorthorn.

  1. Scientific Order

    • The Beefmaster breed belongs to the scientific order Artiodactyla. All members of this order are also known as even-toed ungulates. With 220 member species, this order's animals mostly all have hooves with the exception of a few large species, such as the hippo. The feet of most Artiodactyla members have symmetrical toes, the third and fourth of which tend to be the most prominent. Members of this order are found native to every continent except Australia and Antarctica.

    Scientific Family

    • The scientific family classification in which the Beefmaster breed falls is known as Bovidae. All 137 species found in this family group have stomachs with four chambers used to help digest plant matter. Bovids are all herbivorous and many of them, such as the Beefmaster, live in herds. Male bovids all have horns on their heads and in most species so do the females. The breed shares this family with animals such as the gazelle, buffalo, mountain goats, as well as sheep and domestic goat species.

    Scientific Subfamily

    • The Beefmaster is a member of the scientific subfamily bovinae, which consists of nine different genus of animals. The animals in this subfamily are the ones that most resemble physically the Beefmaster breed, and tend to be large herd animals. Other animals in this subfamily include buffalo, bison, elands and other large antelope species.

    Scientific Genus

    • The Beefmaster is a member of the scientific genus Bos, which includes all types of oxen and cattle. In this genus there are five species including yaks, gaur and banteng. The Beefmaster itself belongs to the species Bos taurus, or aurochs, as do all domestic cattle breeds. Domestic cattle may vary greatly in appearance but genetically they are part of the Bos taurus species. The Brahman cattle was for a while part of its own species, Bos indicus, but that has been more recently grouped in with Bos taurus.