Blackface sheep breeders enjoyed a sound trade for the first of the main ram sales at Ayr, with prices peaking at £13,000 for a tup lamb and £10,000 twice for shearling rams.

The sale which moved from Craig Wilson's Newton Stewart market last year to Ayr, to enable a more social distanced event during the Covid pandemic, was topped by a ram lamb from Andrew Kay and sons Robert and Andrew, Gass, Straiton. Their pen leader, later christened Headbanger, is by the £14,000 Craigdarroch shearling bought last year and bred from a ewe by a home-bred son of a £24,000 Glenrath. He sold in a three-way split to Glen, Gatehouse, managed by Robert and Debbie MacTaggart; Willie and Billy Graham, Craigdarroch, Sanquhar and Ian Hunter, Dalchirla, Crieff.

Shearlings peaked at £10,000 twice, with the first of those bids given for the No 1 shearling from Willie Lockhart, Culdoach, Kirkcudbright. He is by a £4000 Dalblair and out of a daughter of a £6500 Dyke. He was knocked down to the Ramsay family buying for their Milnmark and Ardoch flocks at Dalry, Castle Douglas.

Matching that £10,000 sale was a grand-son of the £42,000 Drannandow Belter, from Colin McClymont, Cuil, Palnure. He is by a home-bred tup and headed home with Milnmark and Craigdarroch.

Overall, 206 shearling rams averaged £1358.93, down £229.97 on the year for 15 more. Ram lambs were also down on last year's big sale which saw prices peak at £34,000 amongst the lambs and £17,000 in the shearlings, to average £2291.21 for 33 – down £571.83 for 10 more.

For full report and pictures see next week's Scottish Farmer

Auctioneers: Craig Wilson