Madura

What do Madura cattle look like?

Madura is a small breed formed from two different cattle lines. One parent is the humped zebu, the other the wild banteng, so the animals carry a zebu hump on the shoulders. The coat is reddish brown, with white marking that falls loosely over the back and rump rather than in a fixed pattern. These are compact animals: a mature bull weighs between 250 and 300 kg. The female side of the breed has its own following, the Sonok cattle, where a cow is judged on how she looks and how she walks.

Where does the Madura come from?

Madura cattle come from the island of Madura, which lies just off the north-east coast of Java in Indonesia. Wild banteng, close in appearance to Balinese cattle, were the first cattle there. Sinhala cattle from Sri Lanka, a zebu breed, arrived more than 1500 years ago, and the two populations mixed. Farmers found that the resulting animals were bigger in the body than either of the parent breeds. Some accounts trace the zebu side to Ongole cattle brought from India instead. The mixture has since settled into a steady, closely bred population with its own character.

What the Madura is known for

These animals are a settled, closely bred population, with the same character passing down the generations. What islanders prize is movement: speed on the track and a quick, even stride in the judging ring. The nickname dancing cattle comes from the way the animals carry themselves. Bulls are handled in pairs for racing and grow used to noise, crowds and music. Cows in the Sonok line learn to walk together with a compact, matched step, a gait that takes patience to teach.

How the Madura is bred and kept

The breed was formed by crossing, and it has come down to the present as a closed, inbred population. Farmers on the island pick breeding animals on looks and movement; the Sonok line above all is chosen for the appearance of its cows. Judges study each candidate from one or two metres off, from the front, the sides and the rear, before naming a winner. A conservation herd is being built up on Sapudi island to hold the breed's lines, separate from the main population on Madura.

What the Madura is kept for

Madura cattle are best known for sport and ceremony. In bull racing two animals are yoked side by side and pull a light sled, with a driver balancing on top; the run is over a course of a little more than a hundred metres. The bulls wear gold and other ornaments, and gamelan music, food and betting often go with the event. The female Sonok line belongs to the cultural and ceremonial life of the Madurese, and cows are entered in walking contests where beauty decides the winner.

The land and climate of the Madura

The breed belongs to Madura, a tropical island off the north-east coast of Java, and the cattle live in its heat and its seasonal conditions. They are grazing animals of island farmland rather than of cold or mountain country. Their small body suits a hot climate. Conservation work has also placed the breed on Sapudi island, so the population now stands on two islands in the same group.

Who keeps the Madura

The Madurese are the people who keep these cattle, and the breed carries their name. The animals are part of daily life on the island, where racing bulls and Sonok cows are prepared and shown by local handlers. The Sonok line has particular standing in Madurese culture and ceremony, and a fine cow is a matter of pride for her owner and her village. Racing crews work as teams, and the crowd around the course joins in with music, food and wagers.

Faith and ritual

The Sonok cows hold a ceremonial place among the Madurese rather than a purely farm one. They are bred and kept for cultural events, and their good looks are valued in themselves. A pair that steps out well together brings honour to the people who raised it. Racing bulls, too, are dressed in gold and ornaments for their public days. The dressings and the contests belong to island custom and to the pride of the villages that take part.

The Madura at fairs and festivals

Two events stand out. In bull racing a pair of bulls is yoked to a small sled and driven over a little more than a hundred metres, the driver balancing as they go, with gamelan music and food around the course. In the Sonok contests, cows walk as a matched pair before judges who stand one or two metres off and study each animal from front, side and back. The racing festival was familiar enough to be pictured on Indonesia's 100-rupiah coin between 1991 and 1998.

Custom and folk tradition

Island lore gives the breed its nickname, the dancing cattle, from the way the animals step out at a trot. Racing is a village affair, and the day brings gamelan music, food and bets on which pair will finish first. The Sonok contests are a quieter custom: two cows are matched as a pair and judged on how evenly they walk, a measure of good breeding among the Madurese. The gold and other ornaments carried by racing bulls are part of the occasion's dress.

Related breeds and crosses

The breed's two parents are the zebu and the wild banteng, and the banteng of Madura looked much like today's Balinese cattle. Sinhala cattle of Sri Lanka and, in some accounts, Ongole cattle of India stand on the zebu side of the family. The result is a zebu-banteng hybrid rather than a pure zebu breed, and it has been kept apart long enough to breed true.

Numbers, conservation and the herd book

The FAO put the population at about 900,000 head in 2002. Conservation work for the breed is under way on Sapudi island, where animals are kept to safeguard the line, while the main herds remain on Madura. Racing and Sonok contests keep the breed in public view and give islanders a reason to raise good stock.

Questions people ask about Madura

Good reading and sources

• Madura cattle on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data