Kamarah Speckles tops at $20,000 for Speckle Park bull

The Speckle Park cattle breed took another step forward in WA when Wannamal-based Kamarah Speckles stud reached a $20,000 top price for a well-bred bull when the Howard family hosted their second annual production sale on May 19.

Conducted at the Wannamal Town Hall by Elders and interfaced with AuctionsPlus, the video sale offered 20 bulls, 11 heifers, 80 straws of semen and 9 commercial crossbred heifers that resulted in all sold except for 11 bulls that were passed in at the fall of the auction hammer.

After the conclusion of the sale, eight of the passed in bulls found buyers.

During the auction, buyers were selective on the bulls and the nine that found new homes set an average price of $7833 — up $1214/head on last year when 21 bulls sold for an average price of $6619.

All 11 registered heifers sold to a top of $10,500 and average price of $8137, down $807 on last year when 18 females sold for an average price of $8944.

The eight lots of 10 semen straws all sold to a top of $190/straw for lot 32 that was collected from the sire Maungahina Nugget Speckled.

The $20,000 sale topper, Kamarah Superman S517 Speckled, was sold to an undisclosed AuctionsPlus buyer from WA’s Wheatbelt region.

With stud sire appeal, the 12-month-old polled bull weighed 612kg — the heaviest offered and came with great shape and topline.

It was by New Zealand sire Premier 54Z Platinum P5 (AI) (ET) (P) (Speckled) and was out of heifer dam Kamarah Queen Bee Q206 (AI) (P) (Speckled).

Kamarah Speckles stud co-principal Errol Howard said the very quiet bull (Superman) was the heaviest calf at all weighing intervals and it carried the equal biggest testicles.

Kamarah Superman S517 recorded Estimated Breeding Values of +33, +48 and +61 for 200, 400 and 600-day weights, all near double the breed averages.

The same AuctionsPlus buyer of Superman also secured four heifers to a top of $10,500 and average price of $8375 and also bought five semen straw lots including the sale topper lot 32.

The $10,500 second top-priced polled bull, Karmarah Sonny Boy S498 Leopard, was secured by the Whiting family, of Munglinup.

This rising 12-month-old bull, with “huge appeal in width and depth”, was sired by homebred sire Kamarah Ladd (AI) (ET) (Leopard) and was out of Kamarah Missie (AI) (ET) (P) (Leopard) (TW).

Vanessa Whiting said she was looking to build her family’s herd after securing their first four heifers last year and she bought 24 cows and one bull earlier this year, all from Karamah.

Her daughter, Cassidy Whiting, said Speckle Park cattle were an unknown commodity in WA with huge potential for their ability to marble from grazing off grass.

“Our first females our dropping calves now and we are keen to look at the commercial potential of these cattle,” Cassidy said.

Another top-selling bull, Kamarah Spud S446 Leopard, sold for $9,500 to first time buyer Becky Cunningham, of Morawa.

“We will put the low birthweight bull over pure Angus females and a few Angus cross Speckled heifers,” she said.

Repeat buyer Murray Grey, of Yatheroo, secured three bulls for $5000/head to continue producing Brahkle bulls — an F2 cross between Brahman and Speckle Park breeds — to put over Red Brahman females at his family’s West Pilbara Glenflorrie station.

“We started our crossbred program five years ago and I am impressed with the crossbred calves that provide us with market diversification,” he said.

Waroona Red Angus breeder Peter Piercy secured his first Speckle Park cattle at the sale buying one bull for $5000, two heifers for $6500 and $4500 and nine commercial FI heifers for an average price of $2694.

“Were looking to put the bulls over some select Red Angus females and we have the option to breed a pure line of Speckles as well,” he said.

Kamarah’s infusion of Premier 54Z Platinum P5’s genetics into producing heifer Kamarah Shenanigan S454 Speckled, offered as lot 26, resulted in a $10,000 stud purchase.

The long, deep and compact heifer was secured by a partnership between Victoria-based Bonkonia and Jackungah Speckle Park studs with local WA cattleman Harris Thompson bidding on their behalf.

Bonkonia stud principal Scott Purcell said the heifer represented outcross genetics for his stud of five females.

Boyanup-based Elgin Dairies co-principal Darren Merritt was a first-time buyer, securing two heifers for $8500 and $8000 with the intentions of registering a Speckle Park stud later this year.

“I like the temperament of the breed and they have good feed conversion and eating quality,” he said.

“We will consider flushing the heifers in July to start our new stud.”

Elders auctioneer Graeme Curry said the relatively new breed of Speckle Park cattle in WA have yet to prove themselves at the saleyards.

“Interest is building and we have sold near 50 bulls so far this year from various breeders,” he said.

“Today’s sale brought several new buyers with various degrees of interest and the bidding was very competitive on the heifers.”