Search results for " Grazing."

The maturity stage of the grass affects milk fatty acids of cows grazing a mountain grassland

2010

International audience; We aimed to quantify the effect of the growth stage of a mountain grassland pasture on the fatty acid (FA) composition of grass and milk. In June (growth) and October (regrowth), a mountain pasture was continuously grazed by six dairy cows in a strip grazing system. During June, the grass C18:3n-3 content decreased while C16:0, c9-C18:1 and C18:2n-6 content increased. During October, the grass FA composition was similar to that observed in the first part of June. During June, milk saturated FA (SFA) content increased while the sum of the trans FA and polyunsaturated FA (PUFA) content decreased, mainly due to the decrease in C18:3n-3 and c9t11-CLA percentages. At the …

Depletion of coastal predatory fish sub-stocks coincided with the largest sea urchin grazing event observed in the NE Atlantic

2020

AbstractIn this contribution, we propose fishery driven predator release as the cause for the largest grazing event ever observed in the NE Atlantic. Based on the evolving appreciation of limits to population connectivity, published and previously unpublished data, we discuss whether overfishing caused a grazer bloom of the sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) resulting in overgrazing of more than 2000 km2 kelp (Laminaria hyperborea) forest along Norwegian and Russian coasts during the 1970 s. We show that coastal fisheries likely depleted predatory coastal fish stocks through modernization of fishing methods and fleet. These fish were important predators on urchins and the reduct…

Effects of continuous and rotational grazing of different forage species on ewe milk production

2012

Abstract The aim of this research was to evaluate the effects of continuous and rotational grazing of different forage species on milk production in ewes. The forage species were chicory (Cichorium intybus L.), a mixture of oat (Avena sativa L.) and berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.), and sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L.). Forty ewes were divided into 5 groups, and subjected to one of the following treatments: continuous grazing on chicory, continuous grazing on the mixture, continuous grazing on sulla, rotational grazing on the mixture, or rotational grazing on sulla. Among the species continuously grazed, chicory showed a lower biomass than the mixture, or sulla. Ewes grazing chicor…

Grazing Management of Dairy Goats on Mediterranean Herbaceous Pastures

2008

Fight on plankton! Or, phytoplankton shape and size as adaptive tools to get ahead in the struggle for life

2011

A renewed interest in investigating the relationships existing between body size and environmental variables is pervading ecological studies. Phytoplankton has a long tradition as model system in studies of community ecology and several research concepts were developed using these organisms. In this paper we try to review the relevance of analyzing the morphological features of phytoplankton in ecology. Starting with a brief account of allometric relationships existing in phytoplankton, we i) examine the physical context in which phytoplankton grow, and ii) highlight the role of their size in nutrient uptake, and that of their shape in light harvesting. Moreover, the way in which the morpho…

The Girgentana Goat Breed: A Zootechnical Overview on Genetics, Nutrition and Dairy Production Aspects

2017

In recent years, there has been a great interest in recovering and preserving local livestock breeds. An interesting situation is represented by the Girgentana goat, an ancient local breed reared in Sicily. Over recent years, this breed has become almost extinct, in part as a consequence of the marked decrease in fresh goat milk consumption. On the basis of these considerations, several studies on its genetic structure and management aspects have been conducted in order to protect the Girgentana goat from the risk of extinction and recover its genetic and economic value. In this context, information on genetics, nutrition and dairy production aspects may have a crucial role in the improveme…

Feeding and management techniques to favour summer sheep milk and cheese production in the Mediterranean environment

2015

Sheep milk production in summer can lead to a diversification of milk products and to a more regular product distribution in the market throughout the year. However, in Mediterranean countries small ruminant production cycles are subjected to seasonal variations in forage resources. During summer, a key period for out of season production systems, nutrition plays a fundamental role in regulating the quantity and quality of milk production. In this review, feeding strategies and techniques that could be applied for out of season production in dairy ewes under different Mediterranean conditions are described for intensive, pasture-based and mixed systems. The most common feeding strategies us…

Relationships between dietary factors and milk urea nitrogen level in goats grazing herbaceous pasture

2008

This investigation aimed to individuate the dietary factors affecting the milk urea nitrogen (MUN) concentration in goats grazing herbaceous pasture and, particularly, to verify the relationship linking the diet crude protein (CP) content to MUN. A total of 205 individual observations regarding dietary and milk variables of 37 Girgentana goats involved in two experiments were used. Goats, averaging 154±14 days in milk and 38.1±5.4 kg of live weight, grazed on swards and received 500 g/d of barley meal. Sward biomass, herbage selected by goats and individual milk yield were measured and sampled weekly. The herbage intake and diet digestibility were estimated by the n-alkane met…

Quality evaluation of cheese from raw or pasteurized milk of ewes grazing sulla forage (Hedysarum coronarium L.) for different daily time

2009

Pasteurization is the more effective method for eliminating pathogens contaminating milk. However, the high temperature of pasteurization destroys either pathogens or lactic endemic flora, this latter involved in cheese ripening, thus impairing the development of sensory properties of cheese. It was previously observed that longer permanence at pasture allows the ewes to spend more time for eating; accordingly, ewes increase feed intake and milk yield. Aim of this experiment was to evaluate the effect of the prolongation of ewes daily grazing from 8 to 24 h and the effect of the milk pasteurization process on milk and cheese quality, with particular regard on fatty acid (FA) composition. In…

MANAGEMENT OF SEMI-WILD LARGE HERBIVORES’ GRAZING SITES IN LATVIA

2019

Large herbivores were a common part of European nature in the pre-agrarian times. With the development of farming and over-hunting, the number of wild large herbivores rapidly decreased. Wild horses and cattle became extinct. In the 1920-30’s, scientists created two new herbivore breeds that resembled the extinct aurochs and tarpans - Heck cattle and Konik horses. Nowadays the introduction of Heck cattle, Konik horses and other similar large herbivore breeds is widely used in specially protected nature territories (SPNT) as a strategic answer to the question – what should we do with the agricultural lands that have lost their economical meaning. Since 1999, semi-wild large herbivores are in…