beef: meat from cattle
belted: white band at the midsection
breed: a group of animals that have come to resemble one another (either through selection and breeding or adaptation to the environment) and that, when mated, reproduce the same type
bull: male with his reproductive organs in working order
calf: baby bovine
Colorsided or lineback: coat pattern where color is restricted to the animal’s sides with a white line down the spine
cow: mature female
composite breed: a breed made up of two or more breeds and designed to be mated with others of its kind (rather than being repeatedly recreated)
crossbred: offspring from the mating of animals of different breeds
gomer (or spotter) bull: male with a vasectomy (used to detect which cows are ready for artificial insemination)
heifer: young female that has not yet had her first calf
landrace: a group of animals that is ideally suited to its environment, often developed with minimal help from humans or using traditional rather than modern breeding methods; landrace is not so much a “breed” as a type because they aren’t bred to a specific breed standard or goal
marbling: fat distribution in muscle tissue that gives beef more flavor
oxen: draft bovines (often steers)
polled: genetically hornless cattle
purebred: an animal within a breed that has known parentage and can be registered
steer: castrated male