The Sarda is an Italian

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...

domestic sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to ...

indigenous to the Mediterranean island of

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

. It is raised throughout the island, in some regions of mainland Italy, and in some other Mediterranean countries, particularly

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

. It is both the most economically significant and the most numerous Italian breed of sheep. It is the principal breed for production of

sheep's milk Sheep milk is the milk of Sheep, domestic sheep. It is commonly used to make cultured Dairy product, dairy products, such as cheese. Some of the most popular sheep cheeses include feta (Greece), pecorino romano (Italy), Roquefort (France) and Ma ...

; most of the milk is used to make pecorino sardo cheese. The Sarda is highly adaptable; it may be kept on lowland or on mountainous terrains, and is suitable both for

intensive In grammar, an intensive word form is one which denotes stronger, more forceful, or more concentrated action relative to the root on which the intensive is built. Intensives are usually lexical formations, but there may be a regular process for for ...

and for extensive or

transhumant Transhumance is a type of pastoralism or nomadism, a seasonal movement of livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions (''vertical transhumance''), it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and lower ...

management. The long, coarse white wool is of little value; it may be used to make carpets or mattresses.

History

The Sarda is both the most economically significant and the most numerous Italian breed of sheep. It is a traditional breed of the Mediterranean island of

. It is reared throughout the island, and in substantial numbers in the mainland Italian

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

and

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, where there are many Sardinian shepherds; there are small populations in

Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an Regions of Italy, administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia (region), Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 m ...

, in

Liguria Liguria (; ; , ) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is roughly coextensive with ...

and in

Molise Molise ( , ; ; , ) is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. Until 1963, it formed part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise together with Abruzzo. The split, which did not become effective until 1970, makes Molise the newest region in Ital ...

. It is also present in other Mediterranean countries, particularly

, where it is known as the Sicilo-Sarde. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries a number of attempts were made to improve it by cross-breeding with stock of the Barbaresca,

Gentile di Puglia The Gentile di Puglia is a breed of domestic sheep indigenous to southern Italy. It originates from the Tavoliere di Foggia, a large plain in the northern part of Puglia, and is raised mainly in that Regions of Italy, region; a few are found in ...

Merino The Merino is a list of sheep breeds, breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monop ...

Rambouillet Rambouillet (, , ) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region of France. It is located beyond the outskirts of Paris, southwest of its Kilometr ...

Sopravissana The Sopravissana is a breed of domestic sheep from the province of Macerata, in the Marche in central Italy. The name derives from the area of origin, the comune of Visso in the Monti Sibillini; it was traditionally raised mostly in that are ...

and

Vissana The Vissana is a breed of domestic sheep from the province of Macerata, in the Marche in central Italy. It may be extinct. It takes its name from the comune of Visso in the Monti Sibillini, and is or was raised mostly in that area, extending ...

breeds among others. These experiments invariably had a negative impact on milk production. Recent

selection Selection may refer to: Science * Selection (biology), also called natural selection, selection in evolution ** Sex selection, in genetics ** Mate selection, in mating ** Sexual selection in humans, in human sexuality ** Human mating strat ...

has been aimed at improving the conformation of the

udder An udder is an organ formed of two or four mammary glands on the females of dairy animals and ruminants such as cattle, goats, and sheep. An udder is equivalent to the breast in primates, elephantine pachyderms and other mammals. The udder is ...

and at making it more suitable for mechanised milking. It is one of the seventeen

autochthonous Autochthon, autochthons or autochthonous may refer to: Nature * Autochthon (geology), a sediment or rock that can be found at its site of formation or deposition * Autochthon (nature), or landrace, an indigenous animal or plant * Autochthonou ...

Italian sheep breeds for which a genealogical herdbook is kept by the

Associazione Nazionale della Pastorizia The Associazione Nazionale della Pastorizia, or roughly "national association of Sheep farming, pastoralists", is the Italian national body responsible for the administration of sheep- and goat-breeding. It maintains the herd books for more th ...

, the Italian national association of sheep-breeders.} The herdbook was established in 1928. Total numbers for the breed are estimated at ; in 2013 the number recorded in the herdbook was .

Characteristics

The Sarda is of medium size: average heights and weights are and for ewes and and for rams. The fleece is white, as is the face; the face and lower legs are free of wool. The skin is fine and unpigmented; there may be some flecks of colour on the skin of the face or limbs. Ewes are naturally polled, rams may have vestigial or rudimentary horns. The Sarda adapts well to a variety of terrains and environments: it may be kept on lowland or on mountainous terrains, and is suitable both for

and for extensive or

management.

Use

The Sarda is reared principally for its

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...

, most of which is used to make pecorino sardo or

pecorino romano ''Pecorino romano'' (; ) is a hard, salty Italian cheese made from sheep milk, often used for grating over pasta or other dishes. The name ''pecorino'' means 'ovine' or 'of sheep' in Italian; the name of the cheese, although protected, is ...

cheese, both of which have Denominazione di Origine Protetta status. The milk yield of pluriparous ewes is in the range in a

lactation Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The process ...

of 180 days; the milk has an average

fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specif ...

content of and contains about

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...

. The meat is most often sold as milk lamb, slaughtered at a weight of some , which is reached in approximately 30 days. The long, coarse white wool is of little value; it may be used to make carpets or mattresses. Ram fleeces weigh about , those of ewes average .

References

Sheep breeds originating in Italy Fauna of Sardinia {{bots, deny=Citation bot