Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-l7hp2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T08:12:19.391Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A comparison of two rotational stocking strategies on the foraging behaviour and herbage intake by grazing sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 June 2020

J. V. Savian Open the ORCID record for J. V. Savian [Opens in a new window] ,
R. M. T. Schons ,
J. C. Mezzalira ,
A. Barth Neto ,
G. F. Da Silva Neto ,
M. A. Benvenutti  and
P. C. de F. Carvalho
J. V. Savian*
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria (INIA), Programa Pasturas y Forrajes, Estación Experimental INIA Treinta y Tres, Ruta 8 km 281, Treinta y Tres, Uruguay
R. M. T. Schons
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil
J. C. Mezzalira
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil
A. Barth Neto
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil
G. F. Da Silva Neto
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil
M. A. Benvenutti
Affiliation:
Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Gatton Campus, John Mahon Building 8105, Lawes, Queensland4343, Australia
P. C. de F. Carvalho
Affiliation:
Grazing Ecology Research Group, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 7712, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul91540-000, Brazil
*
†E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

An understanding of the processes involved in grazing behaviour is a prerequisite for the design of efficient grassland management systems. The purpose of managing the grazing process is to identify sward structures that can maximize animal forage daily intake and optimize grazing time. Our aim was to evaluate the effect of different grazing management strategies on foraging behaviour and herbage intake by sheep grazing Italian ryegrass under rotational stocking. The experiment was carried out in 2015 in southern Brazil. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with two grazing management strategies and four replicates. The grazing management treatments were a traditional rotational stocking (RT), with pre- and post-grazing sward heights of 25 and 5 cm, respectively, and a ‘Rotatinuous’ stocking (RN) with pre- and post-grazing sward heights of 18 and 11 cm, respectively. Male sheep with an average live weight of 32 ± 2.3 kg were used. As intended, the pre- and post-grazing sward heights were according to the treatments. The pre-grazing leaf/stem ratio of the Italian ryegrass pasture did not differ between treatments (P > 0.05) (~2.87), but the post-grazing leaf/stem ratio was greater (P < 0.001) in the RN than in the RT treatment (1.59 and 0.76, respectively). The percentage of the non-grazed area was greater (P < 0.01) in post-grazing for RN compared with RT treatment, with an average of 29.7% and 3.49%, respectively. Herbage nutritive value was greater for the RN than for the RT treatment, with greater CP and lower ADF and NDF contents. The total time spent grazing, ruminating and resting did not differ between treatments (P > 0.05), with averages of 439, 167 and 85 min, respectively. The bite rate, feeding stations per min and steps per min by sheep were greater (P < 0.05) in the RN than in the RT treatment. The grazing time per hour and the bite rate were greater (P < 0.05) in the afternoon than in the morning in both treatments. The daily herbage intake by sheep grazing Italian ryegrass was greater (P < 0.05) in the RN than in the RT treatment (843.7 and 707.8 g organic matter/sheep, respectively). Our study supports the idea that even though the grazing time was not affected by the grazing management strategies when the animal behaviour responses drive management targets, such as in ‘Rotatinuous’ stocking, the sheep herbage intake is maximized, and the grazing time is optimized.

Keywords

grazing behaviourgrazing managementintake rateItalian ryegrasssward structure
Type
Research Article
Information
animal , Volume 14 , Issue 12 , December 2020 , pp. 2503 - 2510
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Animal Consortium

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abrahamse, PA, Tamminga, S and Dijkstra, J 2009. Effect of daily movement of dairy cattle to fresh grass in morning or afternoon on intake, grazing behaviour, rumen fermentation and milk production. Journal of Agricultural Science 147, 721–730.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amaral, MF, Mezzalira, JC, Bremm, C, Da Trindade, JK, Gibb, MJ, Suñe, RWM and Carvalho, PCF 2013. Sward structure management for a maximum short-term intake rate in annual ryegrass. Grass and Forage Science 68, 271–277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) 1975. Official methods of analysis, 12th edition. AOAC, Washington, DC, USA.Google Scholar
Azevedo, EB, Poli, CHEC, David, DB, Amaral, GA, Fonseca, L, Carvalho, PCF, Fischer, V and Morris, ST 2014. Use of faecal components as markers to estimate intake and digestibility of grazing sheep. Livestock Science 165, 42–50.Google Scholar
Bailey, DW, Gross, JE, Laca, EA, Rittenhouse, LR, Coughenour, B, Swift, DM and Sims, PL 1996. Mechanisms that result in large herbivore grazing distribution patterns. Journal of Range Management 49, 386–400.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barthram, GT 1985. Experimental techniques: the HFRO sward stick. In Biennial Report of the Hill Farming Research Organization (ed. Alcock, MM), pp. 29–30. HFRO Publishing, Midlothian, UK.Google Scholar
Baumont, R, Cohen-Salmon, D, Prache, S and Sauvant, D 2004. A mechanistic model of intake and grazing behaviour in sheep integrating sward architecture and animal decisions. Animal Feed Science and Technology 112, 5–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Benvenutti, MA, Gordon, IJ and Poppi, DP 2008. The effects of stem density of tropical swards and age of grazing cattle on their foraging behaviour. Grass and Forage Science 63, 1–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Benvenutti, MA, Pavetti, DR, Poppi, DP, Gordon, IJ and Cangiano, CA 2016. Defoliation patterns and their implications for the management of vegetative tropical pastures to control intake and diet quality by cattle. Grass and Forage Science 71, 424–436.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carvalho, PCF 2013. Harry Stobbs Memorial Lecture: can grazing behavior support innovations in grassland management? Tropical Grasslands 1, 137–155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Champion, RA, Orr, RJ, Penning, PD and Rutter, SM 2004. The effect of the spatial scale of heterogeneity of two herbage species on the grazing behaviour of lactating sheep. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 88, 61–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chapman, DF, Parsons, AJ, Cosgrove, GP, Barker, DJ, Marotti, DM, Venning, KJ, Rutter, SM, Hill, J and Thompson, AN 2007. Impacts of spatial patterns in pasture on animal grazing behavior, intake, and performance. Crop Science 47, 399–415.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Charnov, EL 1976. Optimal foraging: the marginal value theorem. Theoretical Population Biology 9, 129–136.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Decruyenaere, V, Lecomte, P, Demarquilly, C, Aufrere, J, Dardenne, P, Stilmant, D and Buldgen, A 2009. Evaluation of green forage intake and digestibility in ruminants using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS): developing a global calibration. Animal Feed Science and Technology 148, 138–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fonseca, L, Carvalho, PCF, Mezzalira, JC, Bremm, C, Galli, JR and Gregorini, P 2013. Effect of sward surface height and level of herbage depletion on bite features of cattle grazing Sorghum bicolor swards. Journal of Animal Science 91, 4357–4365.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fonseca, L, Mezzalira, JC, Bremm, C, Filho, RSA, Gonda, HL and Carvalho, PCF 2012. Management targets for maximising the short-term herbage intake rate of cattle grazing in Sorghum bicolor. Livestock Science 145, 205–211.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Forbes, JM and Gregorini, P 2015. The catastrophe of meal eating. Animal Production Science 55, 350–359.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gibb, MJ, Huckle, CA and Nuthall, R 1998. Effect of time of day on grazing behaviour by lactating dairy cows. Grass and Forage Science 53, 41–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gonçalves, EN, Carvalho, PCF, Kunrath, TR, Carassai, IJ, Bremm, C and Fischer, V 2009. Relações planta-animal em ambiente pastoril heterogêneo: processo de ingestão de forragem. Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia 38, 1655–1662 (in Portuguese).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gonçalves, RP, Bremm, C, Moojen, FG, Marchi, D, Zubricki, G, Caetano, LAM, Barth Neto, A and Carvalho, PCF 2018. Grazing down process: the implications of sheep’s ingestive behavior for sward management. Livestock Science 214, 202–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gregorini, P 2012. Diurnal grazing pattern: its physiological basis and strategic management. Animal Production Science 52, 416–430.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gregorini, P, Eirin, M, Wade, MH, Refi, R, Ursino, M, Ansin, O, Masino, C, Agnelli, L, Wakita, K and Gunter, SA 2007. The effects of a morning fasting on the evening grazing behavior and performance of strip-grazed beef heifers. The Professional Animal Scientist 23, 642–648.Google Scholar
Hirata, M, Iwamoto, T, Otozu, W and Kiyota, D 2002. The effects of recording interval on the estimation of grazing behavior of cattle in a daytime grazing system. Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences 15, 745–750.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, AD 1978. Sample preparation and chemical analysis of vegetation. In Measurement of grassland vegetation and animal production (ed. Manejte, L. T.), pp. 96–102. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Aberystwyth, UK.Google Scholar
Laca, EA, Ungar, ED and Demment, MW 1994. Mechanisms of handling time and intake rate of a large mammalian grazer. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 39, 3–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laca, EA, Ungar, ED, Seligman, NG, Ramey, MR and Demment, MW 1992. An integrated methodology for studying short-term grazing behavior of cattle. Grass and Forage Science 47, 81–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meuret, M and Provenza, FD 2015. When art and science meet: integrating knowledge of French herders with science of foraging behavior. Rangeland Ecology & Management 68, 1–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mezzalira, JC, Carvalho, PCF, Fonseca, L, Bremm, C, Cangiano, C, Gonda, HL and Laca, EA 2014. Behavioural mechanisms of intake rate by heifers grazing swards of contrasting structures. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 153, 1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mittelmann, A 2017. Azevém BRS Integração. In Boas práticas agropecuárias na produção de leite: da pesquisa para o produtor (ed. Zanela, MB and Dereti, RM), pp. 39–41. Embrapa Clima Temperado, Pelotas, Brazil (in Portuguese).Google Scholar
Mott, GO and Lucas, HL 1952. The design, conduct, and interpretation of grazing trials on cultivated and improved pastures. In Proceedings of the 6th International Grassland Congress, 17–23 August 1952, PA, USA, pp. 1380–1385.Google Scholar
Nadin, LB, Sánchez Chopa, F, Gibb, MJ, Trindade, JK, Amaral, GA, Carvalho, PCF and Gonda, HL 2012. Comparison of methods to quantify the number of bites in calves grazing winter oats with different sward heights. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 139, 50–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Orr, RJ, Penning, PD, Harvey, A and Champion, RA 1997. Diurnal patterns of intake rate by sheep grazing monocultures of ryegrass or white clover. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 52, 65–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Penning, PD 2004. Animal-based techniques for estimating herbage intake. In Herbage Intake Handbook (ed. Penning, PD), pp. 53–93. British Grassland Society, Reading, UK.Google Scholar
Pérez-Prieto, LA, Peyraud, JL and Delagarde, R 2011. Pasture intake, milk production and grazing behaviour of dairy cows grazing low-mass pastures at three daily allowances in winter. Livestock Science 137, 151–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
R Development Core Team 2010. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. ISBN 3-900051-07-0. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. http://www.R-project.org.Google Scholar
Romera, AJ and Doole, GJ 2015. Optimising the interrelationship between intake per cow and intake per hectare. Animal Production Science 55, 384–396.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tharmaraj, J, Wales, WJ, Chapman, DF and Egan, AR 2003. Defoliation pattern, foraging behaviour and diet selection by lactating dairy cows in response to sward height and herbage allowance of a ryegrass-dominated pasture. Grass and Forage Science 58, 225–238.Google Scholar
Ungar, ED and Noy-Meir, I 1988. Herbage intake in relation to availability and sward structure: grazing processes and optimal foraging. Journal of Applied Ecology 25, 1045–1062.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wright, W and Illius, AW 1995. A comparative study of the fracture properties of five grasses. Functional Ecology 9, 269–278.CrossRefGoogle Scholar