Top wool advocate bales out
The conversion of productive farmland into trees has pretty much annihilated the wool industry.
An Australian research project has identified compounds in Merino sheep wool that are attractive to blowflies.
This could help sheep breeders develop fly-resistant flocks, which would improve animal welfare and productivity.
The discovery was recently published in Medical and Veterinary Entomology.
The study is led by The University of Western Australia with the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Western Australia.
Professor Phil Vercoe, from the UWA Institute of Agriculture and UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, says the findings may help to prevent flystrike, a disease caused by blowflies and one that poses significant health risks to sheep.
“This research is a step towards developing more clean, green and ethical approaches to preventing flystrike.
“If future studies find that the wool odour is inherited, then the compounds we’ve identified could lead to a more effective way to breed sheep resistant to flystrike.”
This would improve animal welfare and productivity and address the cost of flystrike, estimated to cost the Australian sheep industry $280 million annually.
Dr Johan Greeff, at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, says the discovery could lead to a simple test – based on the presence of certain volatile compounds in sheep’s wool – that determines whether flies will be attracted to the sheep or not.
Academic Dr Mike Joy and his employer, Victoria University of Wellington have apologised for his comments suggesting that dairy industry CEOs should be hanged for contributing towards nitrate poisoning of waterways.
Environment Southland's catchment improvement funding is once again available for innovative landowners in need of a boost to get their project going.
The team meeting at the Culverden Hotel was relaxed and open, despite being in the middle of calving when stress levels are at peak levels, especially in bitterly cold and wet conditions like today.
A comment by outspoken academic Dr Mike Joy suggesting that dairy industry leaders should be hanged for nitrate contamination of drinking/groundwater has enraged farmers.
OPINION: The phasing out of copper network from communications is understandable.
Driven by a lifelong passion for animals, Amy Toughey's journey from juggling three jobs with full-time study to working on cutting-edge dairy research trials shows what happens when hard work meets opportunity - and she's only just getting started.