Maintaining and enhancing flock fertility is an integral part of herd management and is essential to the success of the wool industry. This research is important as it will investigate the links between reproductive inefficiency and losses from clover disease. Identifying the resurgence of phytoestroge nic clovers in South Australian pastures and assessing their impact in flock fertility will involve direct communication with sheep wool farmers and industry representatives to gather data.
Results from this research project will be able to directly benefit the wool industry, as substantiating this link between phytoestrogenic clovers and their effect on sheep reproduction will allow farmers to make changes to their pasture systems to reduce these hypothesised effects. Implementing appropriate changes will increase reproductive success. As such, breeding from valuable sires and ewes can be maintained at maximal efficiency, and any congenital abnormalities that may arise from exposure to these clovers while in utero will be confidently eliminated. This allows for the continued production of lambs with superior genetics to produce quality wool.