Severn Park Mailing list:

Based on Four Key Principles

The production of heavy weights of fine and superior processing fibres. The fibres are characterised by bright, bold, horseshoe-crimped, soft handling fleeces, comprised of fibre bundles, and with great density, uniformity, elasticity and fibre length.
To deliver such fibres we are embedding a highly heritable, thin, loose and productive wool growing skin - SRS®. This is characterised by high follicle densities, large numbers of secondary or compound fibres, and by ordered follicle arrangements and extreme objective parameters (eg high s/p). High fibre quality on the correct skin and body structure enhances resistance to fleece-rot and dust penetration and to deliver high tensile strength fibres.
Using the SRS® major gene effects as the main driver, incorporating key elements & other major gene effect to do with meat, fertility & constitutional traits.
Advanced fibre production must be balanced with constitutional requirements, so that body size, hardiness and survivability and high lambing percentages are enhanced. Plain SRS® bodies also enable the elimination of mulseing - as is occurring on Severn Park.

Key Drivers of Breeding: The Females

Severn Park believes its elite females, and the general depth of maternal genetics evolved in the harsh Monaro environment, are the secret to its success and future.

All of 1200 to 1300 stud ewes are annually pedigreed.
Heavy selection on temperament, mothering instinct and performance.
Extensive progeny testing of young sires practiced.
Pedigree information in an extensive computer database used as the basis of mating and selection decisions and for the identification of major gene carriers.
Strategic use of laparoscopic and cervical artificial inseminations (AI) to input major gene functions.
Increasing use of Embryo Transfer (ET) work so as to spread elite female genes and major gene effects more quickly.

Embryo Transfer and Artificial Insemination

Embryo transfer at Severn Park

The SRS® system and the identification and replication of advanced skin Merinos, is and will continue to have a revolutionary impact on the Australian wool industry. This is because the industry now has animals carrying major gene effects for heavy cuts of fine microns and superior fibre qualities, and with great prepotency. As well, the SRS® system has animals with both identified superior traits and/or major gene effects for meat & constitutional qualities, for fertility & disease resistance.
Implications for rapid flock changes and dramatic lifts in returns are therefore significant.
This development means that as a Registered SRS® stud, Severn Park is becoming more a seedstock supplier. We are responding with heavy re-investment in AI and ET so as to extrapolate the advanced genetics and make them more available to clients.
15+ years of pedigree and performance recording allows us to identify the elite females for ET work. Our aims in the ET and laparoscopic and cervical AI areas are:

To deliver more advanced SRS® rams for clients - especially for use in CAI programs or as stud sires.
To implant the new & identified ingredients for Meat Merinos - the future 'quad-purpose merinos', combining wool, meat, fertility, constitution.
To shift the entire stud ewe base onto a new level.
To continue implanting greater predictability in breeding.
To continue thickening the major gene effects in the SRS® pathway (ie narrowing gene frequencies).
To maximise elite female mitochondrial DNA.

See Ram Sales - client CAI.

In a nutshell: Severn Park is focused on lifting the quality of our genetic output and not just the quantity of sale genetics.

Measurement and Performance Recording

In utilising a scientifically based biological and genetic approach to breeding (the SRS® system, using major gene effects aligned with follicle determination) Severn Park operates a comprehensive objective measurement and performance recording system.

This is based on full pedigree information.
We use objective measurements (OMs) as an aid to selection, and as objective control parameters to our genetic-biological selection approach.
What Objective Measurements? We use the full spectrum of fleece measurements, body weights & meat scanning criteria, as well as measures of fertility & disease resistance.
See Ram Sales - measurement criteria.