Hartón del Valle
(most common name)

(local/other name):
• Hartón
• Hartón Caucano
• Valle de Cauca
• Vallecaucana
local/other name (English):
• Harton

The Hartón del Valle was developed in the departments of Valle del Cauca (Cauca Valley) and Cauca which are on the western side of Colombia, abutting the Pacific Ocean.

The Hartón del Valle originated from Iberian cattle. mtDNA studies show kinship to:
• Avileña (Spain)
• Galician Blond
• Garvonesa (Portugal)
• Mertolenga
• Murcian
• Pajuna
• Serrana Negra
• Tudanca

Microsatellite studies also group the Hartón del Valle with the Casanareño and Caqueteño. At another level the Hartón del Valle, Blanco Orejinegro and Lucerna have similar characteristics with Panamanian Criollo cattle. This is consistent with the arrival and spread of cattle in the New World.

The coat color is a uniform yellow to reddish, with darker shading in the bulls. There are identifiable dairy, dual-purpose and beef lines and it is noted to have the greatest dairy capabilities of the Criollos.

The Hartón del Valle is considered to be endangered due to crossbreeding with exotic breeds and the loss of cattle farms to sugarcane production. It is unclear why the Hartón del Valle was not included in any government conservation programs for Criollo cattle established in 1940, nor were they included in a subsequent program developed in 2004.

There is a small herd at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia Palmira (National University of Colombia in Palmira) which seeks to protect, conserve and promote the use of Hartón del Valle cattle.

NOTE: The rob(1;29) chromosomal translocation has not been detected in this breed. (Known to depress bull fertility, it was found in 22% of Colombian cattle examined.)

This page was last updated on: 2023-05-17

You can also go to:

My Daily Cow® Colombia and read about other Colombian cattle breeds.

The Cow Wall® A-Z Cattle Breed Picture Reference to see other breeds of cattle in the world.