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Romney Marsh or Kent
EFABIS Data
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International Name |
Romney |
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Local Name |
Romney Marsh or Kent |
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Location |
Romney Marsh, Kent |
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Breeding females
(year) |
12.152 |
|
Trend of population size |
Increase |
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Flock book established |
1895 |
Origin – history
The Romney
sheep is one of the oldest known. Its history can be traced back for
more than 700 years.
It is an
adaptable and hardy lowland breed, found in the isolated and exposed
north Kent marshes and the lowlands of the south east coast of Kent
and Sussex. It was developed from the native European, white faced,
long tailed sheep and took its name from the low lying Romney Marsh
area.
By 1800 it was
recognized as the "Romney Marsh" or "Kent” and was improved with
Leicester blood.
It is an
established dual purpose breed.
Breed description
The Romney
Sheep is white with both sexes being hornless. It has a large frame
and a broad white face below the wool-covered crown. The heavy, long
fleece is of good quality, and beneath the skirting the legs are
white with the wool growing over them in full. It has a strong
constitution and is a very adaptable sheep.
The Romney is
a versatile breed, as demonstrated by its ability to produce quality
meat and wool under diverse climatic conditions and management
systems. Romney meat is known for its delicate taste even in older
lambs. The ewes weigh 85 Kg and the rams 110Kg.
The geographic
and climatic conditions of the open marshes have led to the
development of hooves that are resistant to foot rot, fleeces that
remain healthy in harsh weather and they have a resistance to liver
fluke.
The breed has
excellent quality wool, which is high yielding and easily spun, and
has always been an important factor for this breed. The Romney
fleece is unique among all breeds of sheep in the way it combines
several important traits. It is lustrous, it hangs in separate locks
and has minimal cross fibres between the locks. It is also high
yielding.. Romney wool has the finest fibre diameter of all the
longwool breeds. The Romney’s fleece is ideal for hand-spinning,
and is often recommended to beginners.
The flock
book was established in 1895 and has maintained a continuous record.
Conservation activities
Insitu
Group breeding
scheme with Plumpton Agricultural College.
A breeder is
undertaking performance comparison using embryos from New Zealand
and British stock.
Rural
Regeneration and County Council grants are used for breed promotion
leaflets.
Exsitu
Cryopreservation of semen, National Scrapie Plan Semen Archive 2.742
doses.
Contact: The
breed society is the Romney Sheep Breeders Association.
Sec. Alan West, 2 Woodland Close, West Malling, Kent, ME19 6RR
www.romney.webeden.co.uk
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