@conference {40609,
	title = {Effect of selection for greasy fleece weight on the components of fleece weight in New Zealand Romney sheep},
	booktitle = {Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	volume = {54},
	year = {1994},
	month = {Jan},
	pages = {243-246},
	publisher = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	organization = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	abstract = {Variation in the clean fleece weight (W) between ewe hoggets born in  
1988 from the Massey University fleece weight selected (FW) and control (C)  
flocks was related to variation in four components: predicted skin surface area  
(S), mean number of fibres (follicles) per unit area of skin (N), mean fibre  
cross-sectional area (A) and mean staple length (L).  Mean W ({\textpm}pse) was 3.34  
and 2.48 {\textpm} 0.07 kg for the FW and C lines, respectively.  Of the components, L  
(147 and 126 {\textpm} 3.1 mm; P<0.001), N (29.6 and 27.0 {\textpm} 0.83 fibres/mm2;  
P<0.05) and A (1096 and 1002 {\textpm} 28.0 {\textmu}m2; P<0.05) were significantly greater  
in the FW line (n=27) when compared to the C line (n=22). 
 
The difference in W between the two lines was apportioned into contributions  
from the various components using the percentage deviation technique.  The  
influence of combined components, wool weight per unit area (N x A x L),  
fibre volume (A x L) and total number of fibres (S x N) on W was also  
examined.  The most important contributor to the difference in W between  
lines was L with A and N being less important; the contribution of S was  
relatively small.  Wool weight per unit area had far more influence on 
between line differences in W than wool growing surface area (S) and fibre 
volume was more important than the total fibre number. 
 
Attempts were also made to assess the relative importance of the components  
of fleece weight between sheep within each line.  The standardised partial  
regression coefficients of log transformed values of each component on W  
were; for the selected line, L = 0.26, A = 0.36, N = 0.16, S = 0.38; for the  
control line, L = 0.08, A = 0.58, N = 0.45, S = 0.53.  High values of S relative  
to the other components of W suggest that the size of animal is more important  
in determining the phenotypic differences in fleece weight within the line than  
the genetic differences between lines. 
 },
	issn = {1176-5283},
	author = {Liu AH and Wickham GA and Blair HT}
}
