Náttúrufræðingurinn - 2015, Side 21

113
Tímarit Hins íslenska náttúrufræðifélags
Standardized trials were carried out
in order to determine the leading char-
acteristics of purebred leadersheep.
Their willingness to walk or run ahead
of “ordinary sheep” proved to be une-
quivocal.
A study was carried out in the au-
tumn of 2008 in order to determine the
size of the leadersheep population in the
country based on recorded numbers
nationwide. A total of 1422 individuals
of the strain were identified and record-
ed. As it is never possible to identify all
individuals it is estimated that in fact
the total number was 1450–1500 winter-
fed sheep in that year. Of these 83.7%
were ewes, 7.5% rams and 8.8% wethers.
The leadersheep population was con-
fined to 415 flocks with 60% of them
with only one or two such individuals
while the maximum number was 20 in a
single flock. Leaderewes were kept to
higher ages than other ewes. The popu-
lation proved to be unevenly distributed
over the country. Vestur-Barðastrandar-
sýsla was the only county without any
leadersheep. The distribution was spo-
radic and thin in the remaining part of
the Westfjords as well as in the area
stretching from Hvolsvöllur Town in
South-Iceland and eastwards as far as
the river Jökulsá á Dal in East-Iceland.
The nucleus of the breeding stock was,
and has probably always been, on the
Northeast corner of Iceland.
The basic colours of leadersheep are
normally black or brown and the fre-
quency of these colour genes appears to
be virtually equal in the population. The
gene for two colours (piebald) has the
frequency of 0.92 in this strain of sheep.
The inbreeding coefficient (F) was 0.0274
of those individuals having sufficient
pedigree data to enable its calculation.
The results indicate that increased in-
breeding in leadersheep has been suc-
cessfully controlled during the last few
decades. The influence of certain indi-
viduals in the population is discussed as
well as how best its genetic diversity can
be maintained. Looking at the leader-
sheep population as a whole it seems to
represent an example of a strain of a
sheep breed, which has been success-
fully conserved.
The proposal is put forward that in
the future the leadersheep strain of
Icelandic sheep should be classified as a
special livestock breed.
Þakkir
Við þökkum þeim Láru Sigurðardóttur á Hallgilsstöðum á Langanesi og
Úlfhildi Helgadóttur á Ytra-Álandi í Þistilfirði innilega fyrir samvisku-
semi og nákvæmni við rekstartilraunina sem lýst er í greininni.
Forystufjáreigendum um allt land er þakkaður áhugi og velvilji við að
veita upplýsingar um áhugaverða fjáreign sína.
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