THE mart’s latest fortnightly Wednesday sheep sale attracted a turnout of 1,694 head, the vast majority store lambs, with the 1,514 forward selling to an overall average of £73.49 per head.

Plenty of eager buyers ringside ensured a fast trade, notably for long-term lambs, with some larger sorts of very commercial lean goods either side of £70.

Ordinary horned lambs sold into the £60s, with most of the smaller horned goods reaching the mid-£50’s.

Small Beltex/Texel lambs traded at £82-£90, with a top price of £99 from Bordley’s John Stephenson.

A run of 194 Suffolk/Continentals from JB Bancroft, of West Marton, averaged £86.64 and topped at £93 for two Suffolk ram lambs. Mules were regularly away in the mid-£70s to mid-£80s.

Breeding sheep sold to highs of £170 for in-lamb North of England Mule ewes and to £120 for Texel in-lamb ewes.

More numbers are required for the next fortnightly sheep fixture on Wednesday, February 12, which also incorporates the annual show and sale of Blue Faced Leicester females.

Over in the bovine pens, the 36 dairy-bred rearing calves on parade at Skipton Auction Mart’s latest weekly Monday sale sold to a top of £300 for a British Blue-cross heifer from Brian and Judith Moorhouse in Bell Busk, followed at £295 for both same way bred bull and heifer calves from the Dinsdale brothers in Barnoldswick.

The overall Continental-cross selling average was £244 per head, with native calves selling to £160 and black and whites to £82 for a smart sort from Andrew Ayrton, of Eastby, while a new vendor, David Graveston, from Gisburn, was also among the leading prices.

The section average was £53 per head.

The mart reports that more calves of all types are needed week in week out, with purchasers travelling distances to source goods.

Again, more rearing calves are required for future sales fixtures.