1. Tall fescue sward structure affects the grazing process of sheep
- Author
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Leonardo Silvestri Szymczak, Anibal de Moraes, Delma Fabíola Ferreira da Silva, Alda Lúcia Gomes Monteiro, Carolina Bremm, Renata Franciéli Moraes, Reuben Mark Sulc, Paulo César de Faccio Carvalho, and Claudete Reisdorfer Lang
- Subjects
Grassland ecology ,Festuca ,Intake rate ,Behavioural ecology ,lcsh:Medicine ,Biology ,Pasture ,Article ,Animal science ,Grazing ,parasitic diseases ,Animals ,Herbivory ,lcsh:Science ,Ecosystem ,geography ,Multidisciplinary ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Sheep ,lcsh:R ,0402 animal and dairy science ,Jaw movement ,04 agricultural and veterinary sciences ,040201 dairy & animal science ,Bulk density ,Leaf lamina ,040103 agronomy & agriculture ,0401 agriculture, forestry, and fisheries ,lcsh:Q ,Agroecology ,Brazil - Abstract
The study of factors influencing animal intake can provide a better understanding of the dynamics of the pasture ecosystem and serve as a basis for managing livestock in a more efficient way. We measured different sward surface heights of tall fescue in the process of short-term intake rate of sheep. There was a significant effect of sward surface height on herbage mass (P P P = 0.02), bite mass (P = 0.01) and short-term intake rate (P = 0.03) of sheep. There was a quadratic fit between time per bite and bite mass (P = 0.006). Multivariate analysis showed that the short-term intake rate and bite mass were positively correlated (r = 0.97), bite rate and total jaw movement rate were positively correlated but both were negatively correlated with time per bite. The sward surface height of tall fescue corresponding to the maximum short-term herbage intake rate was 22.3 cm. The underlying processes were driven by the bite mass, which was influenced by the leaf lamina bulk density and its consequences upon time per bite. This sward surface height can be adopted as a pre-grazing target for rotational stocking systems to optimize sheep nutrition on pastures.
- Published
- 2020