Two Italian breeds, the Barbaresca Siciliana of Sicily and the Laticauda of Calabria and Campania, are derived from it.

[4] In 2008, the Barbarin constituted about 60% of the overall sheep population in Tunisia, which was estimated to count approximately 4 million ewes.

[6]: 753  It is particularly well adapted to the intense heat of desert areas, and can tolerate brackish water.

The black face gives the animal better resistance to sunlight and to photosensitivity caused by eating Hypericum perforatum, "St. John's Wort".

These include an all-black variant, and two "spectacled" sub-types with a white head and patches of colour only around the eyes and round the muzzle: the black-spectacled type is called sardi, and the red-spectacled one, sagaa.