The Roslag sheep ( sv, Roslagsfår) is a breed of endangered domesticated sheep that originated in and is almost exclusively found in Sweden.

Origins

Roslag sheep originate from the remnant populations of Swedish

landrace A landrace is a domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural environment of agriculture and pastoralism, and due to isolatio ...

breeds that used to be rather common all over the countryside, but are generally believed to have come from Raggarön in

Roslagen Roslagen is the name of the coastal areas of Uppland province in Sweden, which also constitutes the northern part of the Stockholm archipelago. Historically, it was the name for all the coastal areas of the Baltic Sea, including the eastern p ...

, Sweden from where the breed takes its name.Nordic Gene Bank Farm Animals
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Appearance

Small and generally white or ivory colored (although 10% of the population are black or white-black bi-colored), they are a short-tailed breed who are usually used in the production of

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

and meat. The wool of the Roslag sheep is a carpetwool type; with long, straight or curly guard hair and a thick cover of underwool, which can be up to 30 cm long. Only the rams of the breed are horned. Ewes can lamb throughout the entire year and usually have only one lamb, but twins do occur. The average adult weight is only 35-40 kg (80-90 lb) for ewes and about 50 kg (110 lb) for rams.

Genetic viability

Although there is considerable genetic variation in most of the northern European sheep breeds, Roslag sheep, as well as

Dala Fur sheep Dala may refer to: Places *Dala Airport, Dalarna province, Sweden *Dala, Angola *Dala, Bhutan *Dala, Kano, Nigeria **Dalla Hill, a hill in Kano, Nigeria * Đala, Serbia * Dalas, Khuzestan Province, Iran *Dala Township, Yangon, Myanmar People * ...

(also originating in Sweden) and

Estonian Ruhnu sheep Estonian Ruhnu sheep ( et, Ruhnu maalammas) are a breed of native domesticated sheep found on the small Estonian island of Ruhnu in the Gulf of Riga in the Baltic Sea. The Estonian Ruhnu sheep population is thought to descend from sheep left on R ...

exhibit the highest within-population inbreeding due to declining numbers of the breeds. A contemporary estimated number for the population of Roslag sheep by the

Nordisk GenBank Husdyr Nordisk is a Scandinavian word meaning Nordic. It is commonly found in the names of various entities and organizations based in the Nordic countries, including: * Nordisk Copyright Bureau, Danish copyright collecting society * Nordisk Film, Dani ...

is 496 individuals. Several flocks can be found at the Bokö Nature Reserve on the islands of Bokö, Brånnholmen and

Långholmen Långholmen is an island between two other islands, Södermalm and Kungsholmen, in central Stockholm, Sweden. This island can be reached via two bridges; Pålsundsbron in the east and Långholmsbron in the west. Långholmen is a popular sp ...

alongside endangered Swedish Ringamåla cattle.Bokö Nature Reserve

Protection

The Swedish Peasant Sheep Association represents the interests of individuals breeding Roslag Sheep and is responsible for the breed's conservation. Some owners of Roslag Sheep are members of the Swedish Sheep Breeders' Association, and thus follow the breeding plan for the breed determined by the Swedish National Board of Agriculture. The Swedish Sheep Breeders' Association registers those sheep holders who are entitled to environmental subsidies for the conservation of endangered breeds.

References

{{reflist Sheep breeds originating in Sweden Agriculture in Sweden Sheep breeds