New Zealand Romney

The New Zealand Romney is a New Zealand breed of sheep. It derives from British Romney Marsh stock imported to New Zealand in the nineteenth century, and was established as a separate breed in 1904.[4]: 788 [2] It is the most numerous sheep breed in New Zealand.[4]: 870 

New Zealand Romney
Ewe with triplet lambs
Conservation status
Other names
  • New Zealand Romney Marsh
  • Romney
  • Modern Romney
Country of originNew Zealand
Use
  • meat
  • wool
Traits
Weight
  • Male:
    90–110 kg[3]: 14 
  • Female:
    55–70 kg[3]: 14 
Wool colourwhite
Face colourwhite
Horn statuspolled
Ram and ewe, illustration from 1915

History

The New Zealand Romney derives from British Romney Marsh stock imported to New Zealand in the nineteenth century. It was established as a separate breed in 1904 with the formation of the New Zealand Romney Marsh Sheep Breeders' Association, and the first flock-book was published in the following year.[4]: 788 [2]

By 1915 it was the most numerous sheep breed in the country.[5]: 13  In 2000 the Romney constituted almost 60% of the national herd, with some 26.3 million head.[3]: 20 

It has contributed to the development of a number of modern breeds, among them the Coopworth, the Drysdale, the Elliotdale, the Perendale and the Tukidale in New Zealand, and the Romeldale in the United States.[3]: 20 [6]

Characteristics

The New Zealand Romney is a thick-set white-woolled sheep of medium size; ewes weigh some 55–70 kg and rams about 90–110 kg.[3]: 14  It is a polled breed. The hooves are black. The face is white with a pronounced topknot; there is some kemp on the face and legs. Ewes have good maternal qualities, but low prolificacy compared to some other breeds.[3]: 14 

Use

The New Zealand Romney is reared for both meat and wool. Fleeces weigh about 6 kg; staple length is in the range 180–230 mm, with a fibre diameter of some 32–36 μm (Bradford count 48/46s). The wool is used for clothing, for blankets, for hosiery, and for carpets.[3]: 14 

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to New Zealand Romney.
  1. Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources, annex to The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. ISBN 9789251057629. Archived 23 June 2020.
  2. Breed data sheet: New Zealand Romney / New Zealand (Sheep). Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed June 2021.
  3. David Cottle (2010). International Sheep and Wool Handbook. Nottigham: Nottingham University Press. ISBN 9781904761860.
  4. Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016). Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding (sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. ISBN 9781780647944.
  5. J.R. Macdonald (1915). New Zealand Sheepfarming. Wool-Mutton Pastures. Auckland: Pastoral Publishing Co.
  6. Ian Coop ([n.d.]). Foundation of the Coopworth Breed. Coopworth Sheep Society of New Zealand. Archived 18 February 2007.
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