Study Resources: Sheep
The Australian rural landscape is uniquely suited to sheep and wool production. Over 70,000 wool-producing properties spread across Australia; this makes wool production account for the countries largest land use. Individual flocks range from a few hundred to as many as 100,000. The Australian sheep flock now numbers 79.2 million head (at 2008). The Muresk farm has 3,500 sheep and 31 rams (including Merinos and White Suffolk) 1400 ewes 350 wethers and lambs bred.
Merino sheep
The majority of sheep found in Australia are Merinos and today, with the wool prices not as strong as in the past, we have seen diversification to the cross bred meat sheep. Merino sheep are bred for their high quality heavy fleeces and fine wool.
Lamb meat sheep (crossbreds)
The sheep grown for lamb meat at Muresk are White Suffolk/Merino crosses. Merino ewes are mated with White Suffolk rams to breed around 700 lambs per year (110% lambing rate plus). Crossbreds tend to be a fast growing and larger sheep than the purebred Merino. The White Suffolk x Merino is bred for its meat sheep type, with a well proportioned carcass, high fertility and rapid growth to market weights.
