Sheep | cattle | walls and fences
Livestock appear in the game, in the form of cattle and sheep, populating fields and providing food. In terms of visible form, the tough and traditional were recommended over the cute and cuddly.
Here we show some representatives from Shetland and Orkney of the ancient northern breeds of sheep, but first some photographs of longhorn cattle that were relaxing and dining among what remained of an ancient stone circle, close to the famous Callanish Stones of the island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides.
[Page construction in progress – 10 July 2024]
Highland longhorn cattle eating and resting at a Neolithic Stone Circle, Callanish 2, on the Isle of Lewis, photographed 2017.
Not so cute and cuddly
Close encounters with some unusual sheep – in 2019 a farmer brought a flock of several hundred standard sheep for summer grazing on fields next to where we were staying at the time. Among the sheep (he said) were three ‘pets’ of the Shetland breed. These three did not mix with the rest, but took up residence on our side of the post-and-wire fence that separated the property from the grass fields.
These Shetland were tough and wiry, dark brown all over, very fast and nimble, cared nothing for wire fences and relaxed at ease on the lawn a few metres from the house. Are ancient breeds like this the real Scottish sheep?
The breed itself is described on the Shetland Sheep Society web site [1] and displays a great diversity of colour and markings. The breed likely originated several thousand years ago but has evolved through both local selection and cross-breeding with sheep introduced later.
The author (GS) does not have the expertise to tell if an individual is of the Shetland Sheep breed or just a sheep grazing on Shetland, but those in the photographs above were living on short coastal vegetation, typically on headlands facing a vast expanse of sea. This is an environment climatically severe for livestock, yet they have survived for millenia.
North Ronaldsay
The island to the upper right of the Orkney archipelago – that’s North Ronaldsay. A stone wall was built in 1832 around the island separating the beaches and rocky shores from the grass inland. The wall is to keep the local sheep – the North Ronaldsay breed – off the grass for much of the year except during lambing. The sheep patrol the beaches and rocks looking for seaweed to eat. As do the Shetland sheep, the North Ronaldsay survive in a severe environment.
Images above show (upper) North Ronaldsay sheep on seaweed-covered rocks, and strolling along a beach; and (lower) on grass inside the wall just visible at the top of the image, and rugs made from sheep’s wool, example centre. Photographs by GR Squire @ curvedflatlands.
They have evolved to digest seaweed as a main source of food – you can image them chewing over the pros and cons of vesiculosus, serratus, nodosum, canaliculata and perhaps even some of that soft green stuff. They are farmed for meat but also for wool which is used to make a range of products including rugs, mats and clothing.
Their characteristics and status are described by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust and there’s an annual Sheep Festival which, among a range of activities, repairs the wall [2].
Blackface sheep
The Blackface is the typical breed of the rougher and higher grazing lands. Most of them have a white fleece and a head that is black or a mix of black and white. While more economical breeds such as the Cheviot were brought into the Highlands from the 1800s, flocks of Blackface still populate much of the less favourable grazing.
Images above show Blackface ewe and lamb above Loch Ordie (upper), two ewes with lamb at nightfall on Skye (lower right) and a group on rough heather-grass above Drumochter. Photographs by GR Squire @ curvedflatlands.
The Blackface is kept in various parts of the UK, not only Scotland. The breed may have originated south of the border. Different types – equivalent to the landraces of our ancient crops – are adapted to particular environments.
The Blackface is hardy, birthing and nurturing offspring in severe conditions. On hill lands, mothers and their line are hefted to a location. They belong there – it’s their place – where they find food and shelter [4].
In February 2010, a flock of blackface sheep became snowbound in a field, as sheep do most winters in the north. They survive the intense cold. They scrape through the snow to reach the grass, their winter food supplemented here by hay (note bale to the left).
Cattle
Scotland hosts a wide range of native cattle breeds and cattle that have come to be associated with the region. As well as the Highland cattle pictured at the top of the page, the traditional Black Cattle of the upland and less favourable climates has claim to be the standard.
Many other breeds have evolved over millennia and recent centuries [5]: the black Aberdeen Angus, prized for meat; the Belted Galloway, mostly black except for a wide white band around the middle; and the Ayrshire, kept for milk and meat.
When depicting cattle in a game, it’s better to avoid some coo-y caricature with floppy hair and short horns. There are many examples to choose from [5].
Sources | links
[1] The Shetland Sheep Society web describes the history of the breed, the great diversity of colour and markings, its status today and primary uses.
[2] North Ronaldsay sheep: see Rare Breeds Survival Trust and North Ronaldsay Sheep Festival. For more on the island: North Ronaldsay at Orkney.com
[3] Blackface sheep: see Blackface Sheep Breeders Association.
[4] Wool Alliance for Social Agency blog.
[5] Traditional ‘black cattle’ were a standard in Scotland for centuries. Several current breeds are considered to have originated or to have evolved here though breeding and natural selection. For information, try for example: Aberdeen Angus Cattle Society, Belted Galloway Cattle Society, Ayrshire Cattle Society, and Highland Cattle Society; and for a meat merchants list of Scottish heritage breeds – Campbells Meats.