Bluefaced Leicester

Bluefaced Leicester
A Bluefaced Leicester ewe and her lambs stand in a garden on green grass.
A Bluefaced Leicester ewe and her lambs
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Traits
Weight
  • Male:
    110 kg (240 lb)
  • Female:
    89 kg (196 lb)
Wool colorWhite
Face colorBlue

The Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) is a longwool breed of sheep which evolved from a breeding scheme of Robert Bakewell, in Dishley, Leicestershire in the eighteenth century. First known as the Dishley Leicester, and then the Hexham Leicester, because of the prevalence of the breed in Northumberland, the name Bluefaced Leicester became known at the beginning of the 20th century.[1] In the 1970s, the Bluefaced Leicester was exported to Canada. Exported frozen semen from the United Kingdom is now used to expand the genetic diversity in Canada and the United States.[2] It is raised primarily for meat.[3]

  1. ^ "Bluefaced Leicester". Breeds of Sheep. Oklahoma State University Dept. of Animals Science. Archived from the original on 2008-01-04. Retrieved 2009-03-27.
  2. ^ "Bluefaced Leicester". Sheep Breeds Be-Br. Sheep101.info. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
  3. ^ "Bluefaced Leicester/United Kingdom". Breed data sheet. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System. Retrieved 2009-05-18.