science

Red Poll

Red Poll is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Red Poll rather than just read about it. In short: The Red Poll is a dual-purpose breed of cattle developed in England in the latter half of the 19th century. The Red Poll is a cross of the Norfolk Red beef cattle and Suffolk Dun dairy cattle breeds.

Key takeaways

Red Poll belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Red Poll to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Red Poll from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Red Poll is a dual-purpose breed of cattle developed in England in the latter half of the 19th century. The Red Poll is a cross of the Norfolk Red beef cattle and Suffolk Dun dairy cattle breeds.

Description and uses The cattle are red, preferably deep red with white only on the tail switch and udder. They are naturally polled (without horns). Red Poll cattle are mainly used as beef suckler cows, although a few dairy herds are found in England, as well as in the United States in the state of Texas. They are known for easy calving and successfully rearing a high proportion of their calves. They are sometimes used for conservation grazing.

History The Red Poll originated as a cross between Norfolk Red beef-type cattle and Suffolk Dun dairy cattle (both of these breeds are now extinct). The parent Suffolk breed was also polled; Norfolk cattle had horns, but the gene for horns was bred out in the Red Poll breed. The original name for the breed, adopted in 1863, was Norfolk and Suffolk Red Polled cattle, and the first standard description was agreed upon in 1873, with the first herd book compiled in 1874. The breed became the Red Polled in 1883, and then Red Poll in 1888, when the Red Poll Cattle Society was formed. They are considered to be part of the "Suffolk Trinity" with Suffolk sheep and Suffolk Punch heavy horses. Red Poll cattle were imported into Australia in the mid-19th century, where they are now used for beef production. The first identified breeder in Australia was James Graves, around 1870, although there is evidence of earlier herds. These cattle were introduced to the United States by G. P. Taber of New York State in 1873. The Red Poll dual-purpose bred is the oldest registered breed in the United States and is celebrating its 125th year. The breed is beginning to be reintroduced into some areas of the western US for the small ranch and backyard beef and 4H, as their docile nature makes them easy for the novice to handle. In 2010, Pfizer Animal Health testing of a Red Polled Bull Power Hawk tested a minus -2.58 MVP showing he was in top 1% for feed efficiency indicating Red Poll Cattle have genetics to improve feed efficiency that is important to profitability and grass finishing ability in a moderate frame. Feed testing of steers averaged 2.88 weaning to slaughter for a small Washington feeder in 2012. The Red Poll breed was first brought to New Zealand in 1898, but a herd was not established until 1917, when 22 animals were transported from Australia.

See also Senepol, a hybrid with African N'Dama cattle originating in the Virgin Islands Sussex cattle, a horned red beef breed from the south east of England North Devon cattle, a horned red beef breed from Devon, Somerset and Cornwall Lincoln Red, a horned red breed from Lincolnshire

References

External links

Red Poll Cattle Society website (United Kingdom) List of Red Poll breed associations

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Red Poll

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Red Poll claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Red Poll before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Red Poll ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Red Poll

In research: Red Poll appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Red Poll in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Red Poll is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Beef cattle breeds, Cattle breeds, Cattle breeds originating in England, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Red Poll outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Red Poll in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Red Poll means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Red Poll out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Red Poll in simple terms?

The Red Poll is a dual-purpose breed of cattle developed in England in the latter half of the 19th century. The Red Poll is a cross of the Norfolk Red beef cattle and Suffolk Dun dairy cattle breeds.

Why does Red Poll matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Red Poll?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Red Poll.