Sheep breed
Rasa Aragonesa
Rasa Aragonesa
The hardy meat sheep of the Ebro valley, behind Ternasco de Aragón.
Description1
A native meat breed of the Ebro basin, kept across all three Aragonese provinces and parts of Navarre, La Rioja, Catalonia and Valencia. It is named after the region and its short wool.
A medium-sized, subconvex-profiled, polled and unpigmented sheep with marked sexual dimorphism. Very hardy, with strong flocking and maternal instincts, it copes with low rainfall and extreme temperatures from high mountains to semi-desert.
Kept semi-extensively with shepherded grazing and supplementary feeding. Its main product is the Ternasco: a 70–100-day lamb of 20–24 kg live weight; average carcass 11 kg at 48% yield.
History1
Ancient
Descends from the primitive Ovis aries ligeriensis, which came from central Europe and settled in the Ebro valley.
Today
Base breed of the Ternasco de Aragón PGI; carries high-prolificacy ROA and Santa Eulalia genes.
Breed standard and breed society
The official breed description, breeding goal and herdbook rules are published by the breed's recognised breed society.
- MAPA – Catálogo de razas: Rasa Aragonesahttps://www.mapa.gob.es/es/ganaderia/temas/zootecnia/razas-ganaderas/razas/catalogo-razas/ovino/rasa-aragonesa
Photo gallery
All photos are freely licensed (Wikimedia Commons, Flickr); author, source and licence are shown under each image.
Sources
Accessed: 2026-10-18.