The Edible Shelter Project will investigate the impacts of different types of edible shelter on the physiology, behaviour, welfare and survival of sheep, along with the nutritional benefits of the feedbase in mixed farming enterprises at 30 research sites. Outcomes from the study will inform recommendations for shelter types in sheep enterprises.

The Edible Shelter project is part of a larger Shade and Shelter Project that investigates and develops interventions to reduce the climatic variation on sheep enterprises.

The shade and shelter project is a collaborative research project between Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), the University of Western Australia, Murdoch University, CSIRO, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and a number of other industry partners.

Edible Shelter Projects

Crop Height Project

This experiment will compare the survival of twin lambs born in paddocks with crop a different height (high≥30cm, medium≈20cm, low≈10cm). It further aims to assess grazing behaviour, activity, and utilisation of shelter by ewes.

Shelter and Lamb Survival Project

This experiment will compare the survival of twin lambs to marking when born in a paddock with shrubs or crop compared to the best pasture lambing paddock on the farm. A total of 28 on-farm research sites will be established over three years in WA and NSW.