
Under the new ownership of Aaron, Claire, Xavier and Sherie Watson the annual Roemahkita Poll Merino Stud on-property auction produced rewarding results.
Of the 109 rams offered 101 were sold at an average of $1632 and top price of $10,500 – to return buyer Maurice Collins from Mount Pleasant.
Roemahkita stud principal Aaron Watson said they were thrilled many of the existing clients returned, along with new buyers.
“To keep existing clients that Joe and Tracey Dahlitz already had was one of our main priorities and we felt like we did that,” he said.
“To clear 101 rams the way the season has been the past 12 months, we’re absolutely rapt and picking up a couple new buyers was great too.”
The second-highest priced ram was sold for $6000, also to Mr Collins, with the two highest-priced rams from the same sire.
“They were both from Roemahkita 220218, who have bred very well for us,” Mr Watson said.
“He had a number of sons in the sale who sold very well, and we are also offering another son at the Adelaide ram sale.”
The two highest-priced rams also had impressive Australian Sheep Breeding Values, Mr Watson said.
“They both had really good clean fleece weights and they were both very high on the wool production index as well,” he said.
“The top-priced ram had a wool test of 16 micron, 2.2 SD, 13.5 CV, 100 per cent comfort factor, with a high eye muscle, high fat, high greasy fleece weight and overall, very good raw data.
“There was a lot of interest in him at the Australian Sheep and Wool Show in Bendigo.”
Volume buyers were LS and JM Newton with 12 rams, Devon Station with 10 and Honner Bros with seven rams.
While some rams were sold to the Mid North, South East and Broken Hill, Mr Watson said a lot of the buyers were from Eyre Peninsula.
The sale was conducted by Nurtien Tumby Bay and Elders Cummins.