IT'S official - Merinos are the dumbest breed of sheep.
A study by the University of Western Australia and Kondinin Group found Merino ewes often had weak ewe-lamb bonds thanks to a slower learning rate than other sheep.
Animal science professor Graeme Martin said the problem could be exacerbated by management techniques.
"For example, a large number of ewes lambing in a small area, such as a feedlot, can result in the window of attraction of a ewe to her lamb coinciding with other ewes in that lot," Prof Martin said.
"Ewes may then steal newborn lambs from others, before or after they have given birth themselves."
But in a move to bust some of the myths about sheep intelligence, the study also revealed sheep had excellent visual memory and could remember up to 50 different sheep faces.
Sheep were also shown to have a great sense of smell.
The university also worked on a study of sheep personality and researchers believed sheep psychology could be the key to greater productivity.
Research showed temperament was highly heritable in sheep and scientists identified two distinctive types - "calm" and "nervous".
