Meet the Sheep Breeds 2026

Badger Face Welsh Mountain

Defaid Mynydd Torwen y Torddu

Origin

Difficult to determine, but likely around the Middle Ages — the Torddu colouring may date back as early as the 7th century.

Region

The higher parts of the Welsh mountains.

Appearance

A small-framed sheep; ewes are polled and rams horned. Torwen are predominantly black with white features, while Torddu are white with black features.

Did ewe know? Torwen translates to black-bellied, while Torddu (tor-thee) means white-bellied.

Beltex

Origin

Bred from double-muscled Texels.

Region

Belgium.

Appearance

White-faced with medium-length wool and extreme double muscling.

Did ewe know? Beltex is a portmanteau of Belgium and Texel.

Black Welsh Mountain

Defaid Duon Cymreig

Origin

The original flocks were formed in the 1800s. Black colouring was rare, so black individuals were bred together to create a solely black breed.

Region

The hills and mountains of Plas Tan-y-Bwlch, North Wales.

Appearance

Small frame, black all over, with horns that can have a small white blaze. Clean face and legs.

Did ewe know? The black wool is known as coch-ddu — reddish black in Welsh — and was spun into a chief cloth worn by Welsh gentry.

Blue Texel

Origin

A rarer colour of Texel — only 10% of lambs are born blue. One of the newest breeds imported to the UK.

Region

Bred on one of the Dutch Wadden Islands off the coast of the Netherlands.

Appearance

Finer head and shoulders than a white Texel, with blue leg colour and a white halter mark on the face.

Did ewe know? Not just a different colour — the finer frame makes for easier lambing.

Bluefaced Leicester

Origin

Previously known as the Hexham Leicester, the breed evolved from a breeding scheme in Leicestershire in the 18th century.

Region

Northumberland.

Appearance

A large, tall sheep with blue-grey skin. Both sexes are naturally polled. The blue head has a pronounced bridge on the nose, and the long wool forms close ringlets.

Did ewe know? The breed is hardy and early maturing, making it a popular choice for breeding mules.

Border Leicester

Origin

Bred from the Dishley Leicester with a mix of Teeswater and Cheviots.

Region

Developed in Northumberland.

Appearance

A longwool sheep with a very large frame and clean face. The ears are carried at an alert angle.

Did ewe know? The largest indigenous breed in the British Isles, standing about 80cm to the shoulder.

Boreray

Origin

A local variety of Dunface kept on the two main St Kilda islands of Boreray and Hirta by the islands’ crofters.

Region

The St Kilda archipelago, north-west Scotland.

Appearance

A very small, fine-boned sheep with naturally short tails; both sexes are horned. The grey or creamy-white wool moults naturally, though older animals need shearing.

Did ewe know? From 2008 to 2015 this was the UK’s rarest sheep breed, listed as Critical with fewer than 300 breeding ewes. It’s now At Risk, with over 900 registered.

Castlemilk Moorit

Origin

Bred by Sir John Buchanan-Jardine in the early 20th century to match the other brown stock grazing his estate — an original mix of Soay, Manx Loaghtan, Shetland and Wiltshire Horn.

Region

The Castlemilk estate in Dumfriesshire, Scotland.

Appearance

A small brown sheep; both sexes are horned. The fleece is usually moulted or plucked.

Did ewe know? Moorit is a colour — light tan or reddish brown.

Charollais

Origin

Developed in the 19th century by crossing local French breeds with the British Dishley Leicester.

Region

Charollais and Saône-et-Loire, France.

Appearance

A pinkish-brown face free of wool, with pale, short wool.

Did ewe know? The only region in Europe to lend its name to three different animals: sheep, cattle and horses (now extinct).

Coloured Down

Origin

A rare heritage breed developed from Southdown sheep.

Region

Widespread across the USA but rare in the UK.

Appearance

The same build as a Southdown, but all colours of wool and skin are accepted — including spots.

Did ewe know? Their wool is highly valued for crafting.

Derbyshire Gritstone

Origin

Developed on the hills of the Dale of Goyt around 1770.

Region

The Peak District, northern England.

Appearance

A large, stocky sheep, polled in both sexes, with black markings on the head, knees and feet and short white wool covering the body.

Did ewe know? There are three original historic flocks: the Errwood Flock, Castle Flock and Black Forest Flock.

Devon and Cornwall Longwool

Origin

Bred in 1977 by crossing the Devon Longwool and the South Devon.

Region

South-west England.

Appearance

A large, stocky sheep, polled in both sexes, with a black nose. The long wool forms curls covering the head, legs and body.

Did ewe know? The black nose is an easy way to tell it apart from the Devon Longwool.

Dorset Down

Origin

Bred by crossing Hampshire ewes with Southdown rams in the early 19th century.

Region

Southern England.

Appearance

A medium-sized, stocky sheep with a dark face and short, close wool covering the face and belly.

Did ewe know? There are only six registered breeders of Dorset Downs in Australia.

Dorset Horn & Poll Dorset

Origin

The Dorset Horn is one of the earliest recorded sheep breeds, first recorded in 1892. The Poll Dorset was bred from the Dorset Horn and developed in Australia.

Region

Dorset, southern England — and Australia for the Poll Dorset.

Appearance

A medium-sized sheep with white wool partially covering the face and legs. The Dorset Horn carries horns; the Poll Dorset is polled.

Did ewe know? These sheep can breed all year round, unlike most breeds, which are seasonal.

Dutch Spotted

Origin

Traditional Dutch Spotted crossed with Texel and Zwartble from around 1880.

Region

The west Netherlands, on swamp and marshland.

Appearance

A medium-to-large frame with multicoloured black, brown and white markings.

Did ewe know? Originally bred to maintain drainage embankments and help turn bog into soil.

Greyface Dartmoor

Origin

Descended from local sheep that grazed the low ground in and around Dartmoor.

Region

Devon, in the south of England.

Appearance

A large breed with medium-long wool, its namesake mottled grey nose, and wool covering down to its knees.

Did ewe know? Also known as the “improved” Dartmoor.

Hampshire Down

Origin

Bred from the Wiltshire Horn, Berkshire Knot and Southdown, and recognised by the Royal Agricultural Society of England around 1860.

Region

Originated across the South Downs — mainly Hampshire, Berkshire and Wiltshire.

Appearance

A medium-to-large frame with close wool across the head and legs.

Did ewe know? Can breed all year round.

Hebridean

Origin

A small northern European short-tailed sheep, left to develop by early settlers around 6,000 years ago.

Region

The St Kilda archipelago, northern Scotland.

Appearance

A small-framed sheep with blackish-brown coarse wool. Typically two horns — but they can have up to four.

Did ewe know? They were originally known as St Kildas, but were renamed in 1906.

Herdwick

Origin

Thought to have been brought over by Norse settlers.

Region

The Lake District.

Appearance

A medium-sized sheep. Lambs are born black, then mature into grey, coarse-woolled adults with white faces. Rams are horned; ewes are polled.

Did ewe know? Beatrix Potter kept a flock of Herdwicks on her farm in Near Sawrey.

Kerry Hill

Region

The village of Kerry, Newtown, Powys, in Wales.

Appearance

A medium-sized sheep with an alert appearance, upward-pointing ears and black markings on its face and legs.

Did ewe know? The breed came off the rare breeds watchlist in 2006.

Leicester Longwool

Origin

Old Lincoln ewes were bred with Dishley rams to create the modern longwool breed.

Region

Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire.

Appearance

A large-framed sheep with black lips and nostrils; both sexes are polled. The dense wool forms thick, blocky clumps with a well-defined crimp.

Did ewe know? Also known as the Dishley Leicester, Bakewell Leicester or New Leicester.

Llanwenog

Origin

Created by crossing Shropshire sheep with local black-faced sheep of the area.

Region

The Teifi Valley in west Wales.

Appearance

A medium-to-large sheep with thick white wool and a tuft on the head, plus a black face, ears and legs.

Did ewe know? Originally called “black faces” or “Shropshire crosses” — the name changed in 1957.

Oxford Down

Origin

Developed by crossing Hampshire Down and Southdown ewes with Cotswold rams.

Region

Witney, in west Oxfordshire.

Appearance

A very large sheep with a white fleece and wool across the face down to the knees.

Did ewe know? The largest downland breed — producing the heaviest fleece of them all.

Pedigree Welsh Mountain

Origin

Dating back to the Middle Ages in Wales.

Region

The uplands of Wales.

Appearance

A smaller sheep — males horned, females polled — with a white fleece and brown nose. Tails are left undocked.

Did ewe know? One of the oldest sheep breeds in the world.

Portland

Origin

The ancient Romans brought a precursor breed to Portland Bill, where it developed into the breed we know today.

Region

The Isle of Portland, Dorset.

Appearance

A small, stocky sheep. Lambs are born fox-red, later bleaching to a creamy brown. They have large spiral horns with a small black fleck.

Did ewe know? The Portland is a downland breed.

Ryeland

Origin

Bred by the monks of Leominster.

Region

The rye pastures of Herefordshire.

Appearance

A medium, stocky breed with short, fine wool covering the whole body. A coloured variety exists — now a breed in its own right.

Did ewe know? Ryeland wool was the finest of the Middle Ages — so prized that the trade established the town and its minster, and Queen Elizabeth I would only wear stockings spun from it.

Shetland

Origin

An ancient breed left on the Shetland Isles.

Region

The Shetland Isles, northern Scotland.

Appearance

A small, fine-boned sheep. Rams are horned and ewes normally polled. The coarse wool comes in multiple colours.

Did ewe know? There are 30 different colour patterns within the breed.

Soay

Origin

Descended from a population of feral sheep on the 100-hectare island of Soay.

Region

The St Kilda archipelago, north-west Scotland.

Appearance

A small-framed sheep similar to ancient breeds, but with a finer, more uniform fleece in many colours that falls out naturally (known as rooing). Rams and ewes can be either polled or horned.

Did ewe know? Some rams are “scurred” — the horn grows but isn’t attached to the skull, or is very stunted.

Southdown

Origin

Bred from small, unnamed grey-faced polled sheep.

Region

Lewes, in East Sussex.

Appearance

A small, shortwool breed with white wool covering the entire body.

Did ewe know? The precursor to all downland breeds.

Suffolk

Origin

Bred from Norfolk Horn ewes crossed with Southdown rams.

Region

The Bury St Edmunds area.

Appearance

A large frame with big, drooping ears and a black face clean of wool.

Did ewe know? Locally known as “black faces”.

Texel

Origin

Crossed with the Lincoln, Leicester and Wensleydale to improve size and growth rate.

Region

The island of Texel, off the coast of Holland. Introduced to France in 1933 and the UK in 1970.

Appearance

A medium-sized sheep with pronounced muscling and fine hair on its head.

Did ewe know? This breed holds the record for the most expensive sheep ever sold in the UK — 350,000 guineas (£367,500)!

Valais Blacknose

Origin

Descended from ancient European sheep of the 15th century.

Region

The Valais canton of Switzerland, grazing in the Alps through the summer months.

Appearance

A large frame with helical horns, a black patch encompassing the eyes and nose, and black patches on the knees.

Did ewe know? Occasionally a lamb is born with reverse markings — known as a Spitti.

Wiltshire Horn

Origin

Developed on the Wiltshire Downs over hundreds of years.

Region

The Wiltshire Downs in the south-west, where it gets its name — though now found as far away as Australia.

Appearance

A medium-framed white sheep with large spiral horns, no wool on its body, and hair that sheds in the spring.

Did ewe know? The only native breed that doesn’t need shearing.