Made in Scotland The Lost Flock with a New Fleece of Life By Wendy Barrie Scottish Thistle Award Regional Ambassador (2018/19) for Central, Tayside & Fife Director of Scottish Food Guide Our Scottish ancestors were made of strong stuff and the same can be said for their sheep! Back in 1930 the folk on St Kilda archipelago left for the mainland: some perhaps with a sense of relief that the decision was out of their hands but for others they were left bereft, leaving their home for the last time… also deserting their feral flock of sheep on Boreray. Sixtyfour kilometres west-northwest of North Uist, out in the North Atlantic, the remote St Kilda group is famous for the Soay Sheep Project but also the lesserknown incredibly rare Boreray
A Boreray sheep
62
Sheep. The island of Boreray is virtually inaccessible – indeed one wonders how the islanders ever harvested any wool or meat! The acrobatic sheep grazed the elevated rough land bounded by high cliffs with little refuge from the wild elements. The stunning landscape is otherworldly and uninhabited. The story of the Boreray is a fascinating one. Orkney Boreray Sheep are the last DNA link to the now extinct Scottish Dunface or Old Scottish Shortwool as it is also known, with a probable seasoning of Hebridean Blackface in the distant past. They are
Boreray flock
Boreray mum and lamb
www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com
