|
Kefallinias
GreekEFABIS Data
 |
International Name |
Kefallinias
|
|
Local Name |
Kefallinias |
|
Location |
Kefallonia
island |
|
Breeding females
(year) |
10.000 |
|
Trend of population size |
Increasing |
|
Flock book established |
1999 |
Origin – history
The Kefallinias is an island mountain sheep from the Zackel group
mainly located on the Ionian island of Kefalonia. The breed probably
originated from a local breed on the island of Ithaki.
Breed description
The sheep are white, with a furrow under the
forehead. The males typically have two big spiralled horns with a
dark stripe. The breed is of small size, with average live weight
about 43 kg for the females and 58 kg for the males. It is well
adapted in the marginal environment that is raised. The animals are
capable of climbing up steep slopes. The lambings mainly occur
during the months of November and December. The average milk
production is about 170 kg. Prolificacy rate is about 1.1. Ôhe
average flock size is about 150 heads. The sheep are housed in
traditional installations. Feeding is based on grazing of rented or
owned mountainous pastures of low quality. The main product is milk
which is used for cheese, but the meat is also valued and the wool
can be used for carpets.
Conservation activities
Currently there are no semen samples or embryos conserved for this
breed. The total population is 40.000, of which 2.680 are kept in
purebred flocks and the remaining in mixed flocks. Milk recording is
applied by the Farmers Association and is supervised by the Genetic
Improvement Centre of Athens of the Ministry of Rural Development
and Food.
Contact:Dr.
Christina Ligda, NAGREF, Agricultural Research Centre of Northern
Greece, Dept. Genetic Resources, e-mail:
chligda@nagref.gr,
chligda@otenet.gr
|
