Monitoring the Effect of Weed Encroachment on Cattle Behavior in Grazing Systems Using GPS Tracking Collars.

Autor: Bretas IL; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Dubeux JCB Jr; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Cruz PJR; Range Cattle Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Ona, FL 33865, USA., Queiroz LMD; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Ruiz-Moreno M; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Knight C; University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Orono, ME 04469, USA., Flynn S; Corteva Agriscience, Lee's Summit, MO 64015, USA., Ingram S; Corteva Agriscience, Lee's Summit, MO 64015, USA., Pereira Neto JD; Department of Animal Science, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA., Oduor KT; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Loures DRS; Departament of Animal Science, Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia, Cruz das Almas 44430-622, BA, Brazil., Novo SF; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Trumpp KR; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Acuña JP; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA., Bernardini MA; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, FL 32446, USA.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI [Animals (Basel)] 2023 Oct 28; Vol. 13 (21). Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Oct 28.
DOI: 10.3390/ani13213353
Abstrakt: Weed encroachment on grasslands can negatively affect herbage allowance and animal behavior, impacting livestock production. We used low-cost GPS collars fitted to twenty-four Angus crossbred steers to evaluate the effects of different levels of weed encroachment on animal activities and spatial distribution. The experiment was established with a randomized complete block design, with three treatments and four blocks. The treatments were paddocks free of weeds (weed-free), paddocks with weeds established in alternated strips (weed-strips), and paddocks with weeds spread throughout the entire area (weed-infested). Animals in weed-infested paddocks had reduced resting time and increased grazing time, distance traveled, and rate of travel ( p < 0.05) compared to animals in weed-free paddocks. The spatial distribution of the animals was consistently greater in weed-free paddocks than in weed-strips or weed-infested areas. The effects of weed encroachment on animal activities were minimized after weed senescence at the end of the growing season. Pasture weed encroachment affected cattle behavior and their spatial distribution across the pasture, potentially impacting animal welfare. Further long-term studies are encouraged to evaluate the impacts of weed encroachment on animal performance and to quantify the effects of behavioral changes on animal energy balance.
Databáze: MEDLINE
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