Suckling in Free-ranging Beef Cattle - Temporal Patterning of Suckling Bouts and Effects of Age and Sex

Suckling was studied in primiparous cross-bred beef cattle (Bos primigenius f. taurus) kept on a 1000-ha grazing area. Observations were made at mean calf ages of 1, 7, 65 and 123 d on 20 calves of each age. Recordings of four different behaviours were made at 12-s intervals and recordings of butting were made continuously during one suckling bout per calf and age. Two types of sucking, occurring within the same suckling bouts, were distinguished: sucking 1 (rhythmic sucking movements) and sucking 2 (