July, 1922. The Irish Naturalist, 73 



SOME NOTES ON THE IRISH SHEEP. 



BY R. F. SCHARFF, B.SC, PH.D. 



A FEW years ago I described arx ancient Irish breed of the 

 Pig^ and made some comments on its probable origin. The 

 old breeds of other Irish domestic animals are fast 

 disappearing. Some of them have entirely vanished, and 

 every effort should be made to preserve the available records 

 of the old Irish farmyard stock. 



One of the most interesting subjects of enquir3^ which 

 has been sadly neglected is the past history of the Sheep 

 in Ireland. There are scattered references to sheep in old 

 books and records, but we possess few, if any, very accurate 

 descriptions which would enable us to supply a vivid picture 

 of the striking features of the ancient Irish sheep. M57 

 object in presenting these short notes to the readers of 

 this Magazine is not only to tell them what I know about 

 the subject but to elicit information. Others may be able 

 to add a good deal to my remarks. iVnd this wdli give them 

 an opportunity of weaving together a more connected story 

 oi the past history of the sheep in this country. 



It is scarcely necessary to deal with the breeds of sheep 

 now found in Ireland, for it is quite evident that most of 

 them were brought over from Great Britain and other 

 countries within the last hundred years. The original 

 Irish breeds have apparently been so modified by being 

 crossed with these introduced sheep, that we can scarcely 

 recognise them. The only distinctly Irish breed at the 

 present time is the Roscommon sheep which seems to be 

 the product of the native long-woo Ued race and a Leicester 

 stock. Previous to these introductions which were conducted 

 on an extensive scale in modern times, sheep no doubt 

 were conveyed to this country occasionally from other 

 parts of the world. It is doubtful, however, whether they 

 had any great influence in modifying the old Irish breeds. 

 Of these there were two, viz., the long-wooUed and the 

 short-woolled breed. The latter was chiefly found in 



^ Irish Naturalist, vol. xxvi., 19 17. 



