Breed: Manx Loaghtan
Species: Sheep
Colour: brown
Weight: An adult female weighs about 40kg, and an adult male weighs around 60kg.
Country: Isle of Man, England
Description: The Manx Loaghtan is a small sheep, with no wool on their dark brown faces and legs. The sheep have short tails and are fine boned. In the past century the sheep's colour has stabilised as "moorit", that is shades between fawn and dark reddish brown, though the colour bleaches in the sun. Manx Loaghtan usually have four horns, but individuals are also found with two or six horns. The horns are generally small on the ewes but larger and stronger on the males.
History: The Manx Loaghtan is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds, and descends from the primitive sheep once found throughout Scotland, the Hebrides, and Shetland Islands. The word Loaghtan comes from the Manx words lugh dhoan, which mean mouse-brown and describe the colour of the sheep. This breed is primarily raised for its meat, which some consider a delicacy. The meat has recently received EU recognition and protection under the Protected Designation of Origin scheme, which requires products to originate in a specific region. The Rare Breeds Survival Trust has characterised the Loaghtan as "at risk". By the 1950s there were only 43 surviving specimens. Manx National Heritage developed two healthy flocks. These have given rise to commercial flocks on the Isle of Man, United Kingdom and Jersey. Even so, today there are still fewer than 1,500 registered breeding females.
Uses: Meat, wool