Hostname: page-component-6dbcb7884d-4vmf6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-02-14T06:30:28.349Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A study of wool growth: Part II. Mean fibre thickness, density of fibre population, the area of skin covered by fibre, and the mean fibre length

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

N. Galpin
N. Galpin
Affiliation:
Wool Industries Research Association, Torridon, Headingley, Leeds
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

By measurement of single fibres from tattooed squares the variation in hip region mean cross-sectional area, mean fibre length and area of skin covered by fibre substance in a small flock of Romney sheep has been studied for a few years—see Part I.

We find that under good growing conditions the area of skin covered by fibre is a constant percentage of the skin area for all sheep in all years. The number of fibres per unit area varies from sheep to sheep, and the mean cross-sectional area is inversely proportional to the number of fibres per unit area. The mean length/day is a constant for all sheep. When conditions are unfavourable the percentage of the skin area covered by fibre on a particular sheep falls below the good growing conditions percentage by an amount that is smaller the bigger the skin expansion ratio, but is greater the worse the season.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 38 , Issue 3 , July 1948 , pp. 303 - 313
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1948

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bosman, V. (1934). Fleece density in Merino sheep. Onderstepoort J. Vet. Sci. 3.Google Scholar
Fisher, R. A. (1936). Statistical Methods for Research Workers. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd.Google Scholar
Galpin, N. (1947). J. Agric. Sci. 37, 275.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goor, H. (1945). Hairiness in wool. N.Z. J. Sci. Tech. 27, 173.Google Scholar
Pohle, E. M., Keller, H. R. & Hazel, L. N. (1945). Monthly changes in fineness, variability and medullation in hairy lambs. J. Anim. Sci. 4, 37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar