Every year during the third week of May is the International Heritage Breeds Week. The annual event’s purpose is to raise awareness about endangered heritage breeds of livestock and poultry. We encourage St. Croix sheep breeders and enthusiasts to spread the word in their networks about our sheep and to maintain registrations on qualifying sheep online using Grassroots or by mail with paper forms.
Conservation Status of St. Croix Sheep
According to the 2024 Conservation Priority List, St. Croix sheep are in the Watch (W) category. The Watch list includes breeds with less than 2,500 annual registrations in the U.S.and an estimated global population less than 10,000. The Livestock Conservancy (TLC) bases this decision on the number of sheep registered and alive in our registry records and that of other St. Croix registries.
In 2023, our members registered 1,080 new animals. If numbers continue to grow, it is possible that our breed will graduate to the Recovering (R) category. Breeds on the Recovering list still need monitoring and remain on TLC’s Conservation Priority List (CPL). Once a breed graduates from the Priority List, it might not eligible for support or monitoring by TLC. Learn more about how TLC’s CPL is determined.
The Livestock Conservancy: A Resource for St. Croix Hair Sheep Breeders
Our members have opportunities to benefit from TLC’s efforts. TLC members receive their quarterly newsletter and annual breed directory. There are many educational posts on their site. You can download and print the Heritage Sheep for Niche Production brochure to hand out to potential customers or at special events. The TLC store offers a variety of useful books and promotional items. Perhaps most helpful to producers are the Microgrants, open for application around June-August each year.
What You Can Do
SCHSB members can participate by sharing information about Heritage Breeds Week. Talk to people about the role St. Croix sheep have in maintaining biodiversity, ensuring adequate adaptation to environmental pressures, and avoiding over-reliance on chemical dewormers. Be sure to help your customers who are buying breeding stock understand the importance of membership and registering quality offspring so that pedigrees can be tracked and genetics preserved.
