History
The breed of Arta or Frisarta sheep was created in the 1960s and 1970s in the lowlands of the Arta prefecture through the displacement of the autochthonous Epirus Orino sheep and its crosses of Katsika Karaman, Agrinion Karaman, Karagouniko, Zakynthos, Chios and Sardinia sheep, with the breed of East Friesland sheep. The initial crosses were effected with the use of rams and later through artificial insemination. The process continued until 1982 when the Frisarta breed was recognized by the Ministry of Agriculture. In 2002 the ‘Agricultural Co-operative of Arta Sheep Breeders’ was formed in the Arta Region. In 2005 the ‘West Greece Agricultural Livestock Co-operative’ was established in the Aetoloakarnania prefecture. The greater part of the population is bred in lowland regions of Epirus, Aetoloakarnania and west Peloponnese (Elia and Achaia). Its phenotype considerably resembles East Friesland Sheep and has similar productivity but a much greater adaptation to the relatively humid Mediterranean climate of the above regions. It is suited to breeding in semi-intensive conditions but due to its high productivity it has a relatively high maintenance cost. Usually, it is housed in modern installations and grazes in meadowlands but is also supplemented with additional feed.
Morphological Traits
Arta are a large sized, even-woolled, thin-tailed sheep. Ram weights are 80-89 kg and ewes’ 63-72 kg. Height at the withers for rams is 80-82 cm and 70-73 cm for ewes.
Both sexes are polled. The head is relatively large and long with a slightly convex profile and relatively large, horizontal, very thin, almost transparent ears. The chest is relatively wide and deep for dairy type sheep. The body is long, the belly relatively large, and the limbs long and thick. The tail is thin and cylindrical. Wool is of good quality and absent from the head, abdomen, lower limbs and tail. The colour is usually solid white with exception of a few animals having chestnut-red circles around the eyes and spotting on the ears and mouth.
Population
According to the Athens CAGR data (2019), the total population of the Arta breed is approximately 60,000 animals. The status of the breed is considered ‘Not at Risk’.