Search results for "Grazing"

Alternative feed resources and their effects on the quality of meat and milk from small ruminants

2008

The present paper reviews the quality of meat and milk from sheep and goats offered alternative feeds as a replacement for concentrates. Legume seeds and pods, shrubs, local agro-industrial by-products or novel pasture species are cheap and widely available in Mediterranean countries and are suitable for sheep and goat nutrition. Many of these alternative feed resources (AFR) contain secondary compounds, such as tannins. Tannin-containing feeds result in meat of a lighter colour and tend to increase milk yield and protein content, probably because they protect dietary proteins from ruminal degradation. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) content in kid meat can be increased by feeding animals ch…

Grasslands and Shrublands of Kazakhstan and Middle Asia

2020

Abstract Kazakhstan and Middle Asia comprise 4 million km2 of plains, uplands and tall mountain ranges in the core of the Eurasian continent. The region's semi-arid climate, grazing pressure by wild and domestic ungulates, and long pastoral tradition, have given rise to a variety of open habitat types and a distinct flora and fauna. Grasslands and shrublands are a natural and dominant vegetation type in the forest-steppe and steppe zone of northern and central Kazakhstan, as part of the Eurasian grassland biome. In Middle Asia, grasslands and shrublands are widespread habitat types in the Tian Shan, Pamir-Alai and Pamir—mountain systems that have been recently acknowledged as a global biodi…

Phytosociologic method and Grazing Value of mediterranean rangelands: analysis of Ampelodesmos mauritanicus grasslands in Nebrodi Mountains (NE Sicil…

2007

Human disturbance on Polylepis mountain forests in Peruvian Andes

2014

Vuoristot kattavat 20–25 % maapallon pinta-alasta ja niiden alueella kasvaa noin 28 % maapallon metsistä. Vuoristometsät ovat monella tapaa arvokkaita: ne tarjoavat useita ekosysteemipalveluita ja raaka-aineita sekä sisältävät suuren määrän elinympäristöjä ja eliölajeja. Ne ovat kuitenkin myös erittäin haavoittuvaisia. Resurssien optimoimiseksi tutkijat ovat nimenneet maapallolta hotspot-alueita, joilla esiintyy suuri määrä endeemisiä ja uhanalaisia lajeja. Ihmistoiminta vaikuttaa ekosysteemien luonnolliseen tilaan ollen merkittävä uhka hotspot-alueiden lajeille. Lisäksi ekosysteemin pirstaleisuus, laikun koko ja reunavaikutukset voivat vaikuttaa alueen lajirunsauteen ja sukupuuttovauhtiin.…

Dung application increases CH4 production potential and alters the composition and abundance of methanogen community in restored peatland soils from …

2018

Peatland restoration via rewetting aims to recover biological communities and biogeochemical processes typical to pristine peatlands. While rewetting promotes recovery of C accumulation favorable for climate mitigation, it also promotes methane (CH4) emissions. The potential for exceptionally high emissions after rewetting has been measured for Central European peatland sites previously grazed by cattle. We addressed the hypothesis that these exceptionally high CH4 emissions result from the previous land use. We analyzed the effects of cattle dung application to peat soils in a short- (2 weeks), a medium- (1 year) and a long-term (grazing) approach. We measured the CH4 production potentials…

Global and local stressors on community succession in the Mediterranean intertidal zone

Modelling the shrub encroachment in a grassland with a Cellular Automata Model

2018

Abstract. Arid and semi-arid grasslands of southwestern North America have changed dramatically over the last 150 years as a result of shrub encroachment, i.e. the increase in density, cover and biomass of indigenous shrubby plants in grasslands. Numerous studies have documented the expansion of shrublands in the southwestern American grasslands; in particular shrub encroachment has occurred strongly in part of the northern Chihuahuan desert since 1860. This encroachment has been simulated using an ecohydrological Cellular Automata model, CATGraSS. It is a spatially distributed model driven by spatially explicit irradiance and runs on a fine-resolution gridded domain. Plant competition is m…

Plant-soil interactions in cold climate

2013

Data from: Grazing decreases N partitioning among coexisting plant species

2018

1. Herbivores play a key role in shaping ecosystem structure and functions by influencing plant and microbial community composition and nutrient cycling. 2. This study investigated the long-term effects of herbivores on plant resource acquisition. We explored differences in the natural δ15N signatures in plant, microbial and soil N pools, and examined mycorrhizal colonization in two tundra sites that have been either lightly or heavily grazed by reindeer for more than 50 years. The study examined changes in nutrient acquisition in five common tundra plants with contrasting traits and mycorrhiza status; the mycorrhizal dwarf shrubs, Betula nana, Vaccinium myrtillus and Empetrum hermaphroditu…

Characterization of thin plastic foils for applications in X-ray optics technology

2007

Thin plastic foils are being investigated to build shell optics for X-ray telescopes. Compared to polished glass optics, the advantage is in terms of increased collecting area, light weight and lower cost. Plastic material is also desirable to allow deformation into a complete surface of revolution. We collected plastic materials of common use for industrial applications and also specialty materials developed for the electronic industry. A comparative study was then performed to evaluate the optical quality of the selected plastic films. Surface analysis was carried out with topographic instruments to investigate the microroughness of our samples at different scan lengths. Preliminary resul…