View source for Blaarkop

{{Short description|Dutch breed of dairy cattle}}
{{Infobox cattle breed
| name          = Groninger Blaarkop
| image         = Rode blaarkop hoogdrachtig.jpg
| image_size    = 
| image_alt     = 
| image_caption =  
| image2        = 
| image_size2   = 
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| status        = {{ubl|[[FAO]] (2007): endangered{{r|barb|p=136}}|[[DAD-IS]] (2024): endangered maintained{{r|dad}}|[[Stichting Zeldzame Huisdierrassen|SZH]] (2024): endangered{{r|szh}}}}
| altname       = Blaarkop
| country       = Netherlands
| distribution  = 
| standard      = 
| use           = dual-purpose, milk and meat
| weight        = 
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| skincolour    = 
| coat          = black-and-white, red-and-white
| horn          = 
| subspecies    = taurus
| note          = 
}}


The '''Blaarkop''' or '''Groninger Blaarkop''' is a Dutch [[list of cattle breeds|breed]] of dual-purpose cattle. 
''Blaarkop'' is [[Dutch language|Dutch]] for ''blister head''. Its main breeding area is in the province of [[Groningen (province)|Groningen]]. 

== History ==
[[File:Bellowing ox, by Jan Asselijn.jpg|thumb|''Head of a Bellowing Ox'', painting by [[Jan Asselijn]], early seventeenth century]]
White-headed cattle in Holland have been mentioned as early as the fourteenth century.{{cn|date=November 2024}} Cattle showing some similarity to the modern Blaarkop appear in an ''Adoration'' by [[Pieter Aertsen]] dating from about 1560, and in a seventeenth-century ''Head of a Bellowing Ox'' by [[Jan Asselijn]].{{r|leg}}  From the nineteenth century, there are also ''Blaarkoppen'' in the [[Utrecht (province)|Utrecht]] and [[Leiden]] regions.

Bulls of this type were among the cattle shipped to the [[Cape of Good Hope]] by [[Willem Adriaan van der Stel]] during his time as [[governor of the Cape Colony]] (1699–1707).{{r|felius|p=625}}

{{lang|nl|De Blaarkopstichting|i=no}}, a [[non-profit foundation]] for the development and conservation of the Blairkop, was established in 2002.{{r|bs2}}

== Characteristics ==
[[File:Cows at the Doorwerth heather Park, to keep the vegetation short and to give the heather possibilities to grow - panoramio.jpg|thumb|alt=black and red white-headed cattle lying down on heath land|Used for [[vegetation management]] near [[Doorwerth]], in [[Gelderland]]]]
The Blaarkop breed is sturdily built with matching muscles, a horned head, and strong legs. Both red (60% of the population) and black (40%) Blaarkoppen exist. The body is solid red or black, while the head is white with a red or black ring (''blister'') around the eyes; the tail has a white tip.

[[Bull]]s are {{convert|1.45 to 1.50|m}} high and weigh {{convert|800|kg}}. [[Cow]]s are {{convert|1.35 to 1.40|m}} high and weigh {{convert|600|kg}}. 

== Use ==

The average milk yield is {{val|6166|u=kg}} in a [[lactation]] of 315 days, with {{val|4.38|u=%}} [[milk fat|fat]] and {{val|3.57|u=%}} protein;{{r|cabi|p=191|dad}} many cows give more than {{val|7000|u=kg}}, and yields above {{val|9000|u=kg}} can occur.{{r|bs}}

== References ==
<references>

<ref name=barb>Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20200623201209/http://www.fao.org/3/a1250e/annexes/List%20of%20breeds%20documented%20in%20the%20Global%20Databank%20for%20Animal%20Genetic%20Resources/List_breeds.pdf List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources], annex to [https://web.archive.org/web/20170110125634/http://www.fao.org/3/a-a1250e.pdf ''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture'']. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{isbn|9789251057629}}. Archived 23 June 2020.</ref>

<ref name=bs>[https://web.archive.org/web/20240615201258/https://www.blaarkopnet.nl/rasinformatie-en-artikelen/ Rasinformatie en Artikelen] (in Dutch). De Blaarkopstichting. Archived 15 June 2024.</ref>

<ref name=bs2>[https://web.archive.org/web/20240610022515/https://www.blaarkopnet.nl/de-blaarkopverenigingen/blaarkopstichting/ Blaarkopstichting] (in Dutch). De Blaarkopstichting. Archived 10 June 2024.</ref>

<ref name=cabi>Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016). [https://books.google.it/books?id=2UEJDAAAQBAJ&hl=en ''Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding''] (sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. {{isbn|9781780647944}}.</ref>

<ref name=dad>[https://dadis-breed-datasheet-ws.firebaseapp.com/?country=NLD&specie=Cattle&breed=Groninger%20Blaarkop&external=1&lang=en Breed data sheet: Groninger Blaarkop / Netherlands (Kingdom of the) (Cattle)]. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed November 2024.</ref>

<ref name=felius>Marleen Felius (1995). [https://books.google.it/books?id=iXImAQAAMAAJ&hl=en ''Cattle Breeds: An Encyclopedia'']. Doetinchem, Netherlands: Misset. {{isbn|9789054390176}}.</ref>

<ref name=leg>Jan Glass (n.d.). [https://web.archive.org/web/20240525045844/https://www.levenderfgoedgroningen.nl/alle-verhalen/de-blaarkop Groninger Blaarkop] (in Dutch). ''Levend Erfgoed Groningen''. Groningen: Centrum Groninger Taal & Cultuur. Archived 25 May 2024.</ref>

<ref name=szh>[https://web.archive.org/web/20240718061124/https://szh.nl/dieren/rund/groninger-blaarkop/ Groninger Blaarkop] (in Dutch). Wageningen: Stichting Zeldzame Huisdierrassen. Archived 18 July 2024.</ref>

</references>

== Further reading ==
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[[Category:Cattle breeds originating in the Netherlands]]

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