History
Katerini and Sykia breeds belong to the steppe or podolic breeds of cattle. Katerini cattle bear similarities to images of cattle depicted in archaeological finds such as murals, coins and others dated at the Minoan and Mycenaean periods. A mealy muzzle and lyre shaped horns are usually characteristics associated with primitive and unimproved breeds. The breed was formed in the region of Katerini as working cattle and from there spread to many areas of Macedonia, Thessaly and Thrace. Today it is bred exclusively for its meat.
Morphological Traits
Katerini cattle attain the greatest size of all Greek indigenous cattle breeds. Height at the withers for bulls is 115-125 cm and 110-120 cm for cows with average weights of 375 kg and 280 kg, respectively.
The head is symmetrical in relation to the body with long, light coloured, lyre shaped horns with black tips. The forequarters are more developed due to better musculature. Bulls have quite pronounced dewlaps though in cows they are somewhat smaller. The back is usually straight though in some animals there is a perceptible dip from the withers to the croup. The tail is long, ending in a tuft.
Coat colour in cows is usually grey or reddish-brown in various shades with lighter tones on the back, upper chest and undersides. Bulls usually have a much darker coat and often lack the light-coloured dorsal stripe. The limbs are strong with black hooves.
Population
The breed’s geographical distribution formerly included the region of Katerini and other lowland regions of Macedonia and Thrace, where it was mainly crossed with other breeds and especially Vrahicheratiki. In the Goura plateau (Magnesia prefecture) a distinct population of a smaller type Katerini was mentioned by Xatziolos in 1941. Nowadays the breed is restricted to the Goura plateau of Magnesia and the Trikala prefecture in Thessaly, although crossed animals with steppe features occur in East Macedonia and Thrace. According to CAGR (2019), around 900 animals are recorded. However, the pure bred population is currently estimated at less than 400 animals distributed in four herds. The population of the breed is considered ‘Vulnerable’.