The Istrian Milk is a
breed
A breed is a specific group of 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 several slig ...
of
domestic sheep native to the
Karst Plateau and regions of
Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...
in
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
and
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
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.
The Istrian Milk is mainly used for its milk, which is primarily used in cheese making.
Today, the breed is endangered.
History
The Istrian Milk sheep is native to the Istrian peninsula of Croatia and the Karst region of Croatia,
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
, and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
.
The breed likely developed out of indigenous sheep being crossed with
Apulian
it, Pugliese
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and
Syrian
Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indi ...
breeds during Roman times, and
balkan
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
breeds in the 17th century.
The Istrian Milk was traditionally raised by
transhumance
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 vall ...
,
with migratory herds grazing in
Snežnik in the summer,
Vremščica in the fall and Istria and
Friuli through the winter months.
However, recent political division has prohibited transhumance grazing in the Istrian Milk's traditional range. This has caused the breed to be divided into three reproductively isolated groups: one in Croatia, one in Slovenia, and one in Italy.
Today, they are primarily raised in permanent or semi-permanent herds.
Although there are some variations in their characteristics, there is little genetic difference in these populations today.
Characteristics
The Istrian Milk has a large frame and long, powerful legs. Rams typically weigh about 95 kg and have large, spiral shaped horns, while ewes weigh around 60–75 kg and are usually polled.
Typically, they are white-ish in color with dark brown or black spots,
although there are some primarily dark animals as well.
Ewes are able to breed at two years of age, while rams can breed at one year. The Istrian Milks' average litter size is about 1.21 lambs.
The Istrian Milk sheep's milk is known for being very high in fat content and protein. Their milk averages a fat content of 9% and a 6.4% protein content, although some individual sheep can produce milk with 13% fat and 7% protein.
Typically, Istrian Milk sheep produce 100–150 kg of milk per lactation,
although studies have found that Croatian Istrian Milk sheep produce substantially more, averaging 205 kg of milk per lactation.
There have been attempts to cross the Istrian Milk with the
East Friesian in order to increase its milk production.
Uses
As its name indicates, the Istrian Milk is primarily a dairy breed; however, it is kept for meat and wool as well.
Its milk is primarily used for cheese making.
Their milk is well-suited for cheese because of the breed's adaptations to its natural habitat, especially plants available for grazing. Their milk is traditionally used in
Istrian cheese, a traditional Croatian cheese originating in the Istrian peninsula.
However, many other cheeses are produced from its milk, as well.
The Istrian Milk is also sometimes raised exclusively for lamb meat.
Lambs are typically slaughtered at 5–6 weeks of age and 12–25 kg of weight. They have an average dressing percentage of 45.9%.
Due to small population size and issues with predatory animals, Istrian Milk lambs are normally not found for sale in Slovenia.
Conservation status
Today, the Istrian Milk sheep is endangered.
The estimated remaining population includes roughly 2,743 in Croatia, roughly 1,020 in Slovenia, and around 1,000 in Italy.
In Italy, the breed was especially threatened by a general collapse of sheep raising in the Karst upland after World War II, which saw the number of Istrian Milk in Italy plummet to about 250 in 1983, down from around 1,000 in the early 1960s.
Today, however, there are conservation programs in place in all three countries with Istrian Milk populations.
References
{{Reflist
Croatian cuisine
Sheep breeds