Lonk

File:Lonk Ram, Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911.jpg

Lonk Ram, photograph by Frank Babbage from the Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1911

The Lonk is a British breed of domestic sheep. It belongs to the group of black-faced hill breeds of northern England,Template:R and is found in the hills of the central and southern Pennines of Lancashire and Yorkshire.Template:R It is documented from the mid-eighteenth century; a flock book was started in 1905.Template:R

History

The Lonk has been reared on the fells of Lancashire and Yorkshire for several hundred years; a herd with records going back to 1740 is still in existence.Template:R It is particularly associated with the area around Haslingden, and is also known as the Improved Haslingden. The origin of the word 'Lonk' is unknown; it may derive from the Template:Langx, Template:Langx, with meanings including 'proud' and 'bold';Template:R it may be a word for the coarse grazing of its area of origin;Template:R or it may derive from 'lanky'.Template:R

A breed society, the Lonk Sheep Breeders' Association, was established in 1905, and a flock book was begun in the same year.Template:R

Like other traditional breeds, the Lonk was threatened by the mass slaughter of flocks during the 2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak;Template:R some genetic material was placed in storage.Template:R

In 1999 the total breed population was reported to DAD-IS at 3645 head.Template:R In 2003 a survey found that there might be close to 40 000 head of unregistered stock, but by 2012 this figure had fallen to 20 000.Template:R In 2021 the breed was listed by the FAO as "not at risk";Template:R in 2021 it was reported to DAD-IS as "endangered", and was listed on the watchlist of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust as "at risk".Template:R

Characteristics

The Lonk is of medium size, though larger than most upland breeds. The face and legs are clear of wool; the legs are mottled black-and-white, the face may be mottled or black; the fleece is white. Both sexes are horned.Template:R It is strong-boned, agile, long-lived and hardy, and is well adapted to the environment of its area of origin and to the poor grazing of the fells. It can be kept year-round on upland pasture.Template:R

Use

Like most other British sheep, the Lonk is reared for its meat and for its wool. Lambs can reach a killing weight of approximately 36 kg on moorland pasture alone.Template:R

Ewe fleeces weigh about 3 kg; the wool is rather less coarse than that of many other moorland breeds, with a Bradford count of 44s–56s. It is almost entirely free of kemp.Template:R

Ewes kept in lowland conditions may be mated to terminal sire rams, producing fast-growing hybrid lambs that may be ready for slaughter in twelve weeks.Template:R