The Autumn Muster
- ZQ Natural Fibre
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Every year in Autumn merino sheep are brought down from the remote high-country where they live to spend the winter on greener pastures. This is the muster, a momentous task for ZQ growers – with stations being as vast as 40,000 hectares and having up to 2,500 metres elevation. Because of the landscape and the timid nature of merino sheep, most growers still bring the sheep down the mountain in the same way it’s been done for hundreds of years, on horseback or on foot, with trusty dogs at their side and a whistle to guide them.
Merino sheep spend the summer months grazing in the high country. Each year before heavy snow falls and temperatures drop, they are mustered down to access better feed and allow the high country to rest.
“The Autumn Muster is a big week in the calendar for everyone involved in the farm. Probably the biggest week of the year. If you're a shepherd, it’s a chance to get up in the hills with all your dogs and mustering shape for a week straight. Pretty much what most shepherds take the job for. You can’t beat the scenery really and the people as well, we’ve got a good crew here.” - Henry Subtil, Omarama Station
Merino sheep are well-suited to high-country environments due to their unique physiological adaptations and the incredible properties of the merino wool they produce. Their "miracle" fibre excels at thermoregulation. It keeps the sheep cool in summer by providing insulation and allowing air circulation, and incredibly warm in winter by trapping heat.
Merinos are natural foragers and enjoy the variety they get feeding on the wild tussock grasslands characteristic of the high country. The hills are also drier than the lowlands where excessive moisture can cause issues like footrot and flystrike, which merinos are more susceptible to than other sheep. Merino sheep prefer their food on the go. Compared to other breeds they will eat and move, covering a far greater distance than their counterparts. While they aren’t as agile as mountain goats, merinos can easily navigate the steep and rugged terrain of the high country, essential for accessing grazing areas.
While the sheep may be at home on the rugged terrain, the conditions are challenging for the shepherds leading the muster and mean that it can take up to a week to bring the sheep off the mountains. It requires teamwork, with shepherds and dogs working together to get the job done.
Once the sheep are down on the flat they’re checked to make sure they’re in good health, before being put out to pasture for breeding. Five months later when spring arrives lambing season will begin. The cycle continues as the merinos return to the now rested high country for summer, until the next autumn muster.
“It’s about everybody working together, not one person going too fast or too slow, but trying to all come down at the same time so that all the sheep are going forward the whole time,” - Annabelle Subtil, Omarama Station
