Variations in Follicle Population Density in the Merino Skin

Abstract

DURING research on fleece density in the merino, I was impressed with the urgent need for some form of direct observation of the skin structure in studying the follicle and fibre population. Consequently I have in the main adopted histological techniques. However, the suggestion made by Duerden¹ regarding the possible value of observations on the ‘grain’ surface of leather appealed to me as an even more rapid and direct approach. Through the courtesy of the Wool Industries Research Association, I was able to secure the tanned skin of a South African Cape merino which Duerden had used in his comparative zoological studies of fibre and follicle arrangement in the Ovidæ.