The mating exploits of a male sheep will be filmed by a camera fixed to his woolly coat.
The sight of farm animals making babies has been known to raise the blushes of anyone on wholesome family walks in the countryside, but the mating habits of Paolo, an 18-month-old Portland Ram, will be there, in full flight, for all to see.
The footage of “nature as it happens”, is to be taken by a webcam, which will be broadcast online for the world to see. It is bound to become a Ewe Tube sensation.
Paolo is expected to tup about 30 ewes over a six-week period. Their lambs will be born in the spring.
The ”ram-cam’’ is part of the community farming initiative MyFarm, which is run at the National Trust’s Wimpole Home Farm in Cambridgeshire.
The video opens with a warning: “Ram Cam contains footage of a ram running, eating and … doing what comes naturally to a ram when in a field of 30 ewes in season”.
Richard Morris, the farm manager, said: “It may seem a bit strange that we want to follow and even film Paolo as he goes about his business, but farming is all about breeding, growing and harvest.’’
Paolo’s mating adventures can be followed on the National Trust’s My Farm website
